• "T-Takamouto!" a high-pitched voice called from across the crowd of students. The twins looked up to see a lower classman by the name of Kia Mikori running up to them--Sessora specifically--from the school building. "Takamouto!" she repeated, once she finally caught up to the two of them.

    "Yes?" he asked in a friendly voice, stopping and turning toward her. Sessori stopped automatically, her body already programmed to stay in sync with her brother's at all times.

    The girl, Kia, froze, her eyes widening a bit as a tinge of pink crossed her face. "U-Um . . . I . . . I was just wondering if . . . "

    "If you have something to say, we suggest you say it already. We have better places to be than here watching you make a fool of yourself." To anyone else, Sessori would have appeared to be emotionless as she spoke. However, Sessora was able to catch the nearly nonexistant narrow of her eyes as easily as if there was a bright flashing arrow advertising it. Kia's widened to the size of saucers, and she looked down to hide her deepened blush.

    Sessora rubbed the back of his head awkwardly. "Ehehe . . . what she meant to say," he started, trying to cover up his sister's cruelty, "is we're needed at home and don't want to be late!" Sessora didn't smile, as most would have, but her eyes sparkled with triumphant glee. "But," Sessora continued, and his sister's boasting glint changed quickly back to a glare, slightly more prominent than the first one. "I'm sure we have time to stop and chat for a few. Was there something specific you wanted to say?"

    Sessora just had a way with words that no matter the situation always made everything seem so much better. It's one of the thigns Sessori loved about her twin. They'd been through rough times, and he had always been there to help pull her through.

    "Th-Thank you, Takamouto!" she stuttered, smiling shyly.

    "Hey, hey, call me Sessora," he offered. He never did like titles.

    "Okay . . ." Kia trailed off.

    After a moment of awkward silence--courtesy of Sessori's ever growing glare--Sessora asked again, "So . . . was there something you wanted tot alk about, Kia?"

    Her overactive blush returned as she nodded. The two waited for her to say more--Sessori somewhat annoyedly. "U-Um . . . umm . . . " Kia thrust her hand into the pocket of her school uniform and pulled out a small red box and shoved it at Sessora with both hands. "I like you!" she called, her face matching the color of the box as she raced off down the hill and away from the school.

    Sessora stood there, stunned, box still in hand. While he was in shock, Sessori was fuming. Before he knew what happened he was clutching air and Sessori had whisked the box--most likely of chocolates--away and practically drowned it in a nearby trash can. She stomped away (very gracefully for a stomp) down the hill in the direction of home. Finally snapping out of his trance, Sessora sped after his sister, grabbing her arm from behind and foring her to face him.

    His eyes widened at the sight.

    Her face was tinged pink--with embarrassment or anger neither teen knew--and her eyes, though they refuse to look at him, were swimming with emotion, which was rare for her.

    "Sessori."

    At the sound of her name, she looked at him upon impulse, as if the sound of his voice alone speaking it aloud was enough to have complete and utter control over her.

    "Sessora."

    Though she had trained herself well to keep all emotion out of her voice, Sessori could hear them plain as day. Hurt. Betrayal. Anger. Jealousy. Confusion. And that was just the start of it.

    "What's wrong?" he aked, bending down a few inches so their faces were on the same level to stare at her straight on.

    She wanted to look away, she really did. But she couldn't. It wasn't lack of will, she just simply couldn't, like there was an invisible bond, forcing their eyes to meet. She tried with all she had in her to tear her eyes away, but no matter how hard she tried she couldn't escape his gaze, not even to blink. It felt like she was going to drown in his blue eyes if she didn't get away soon.

    "Sessori . . . " he repeated, getting a little impatient. "I'm dying here, now what's up?"

    The second he took time to close his eyes for even a fraction of a second Sessori tore away from his grasp and back away to a safe three feet away. She glowered down at the cement, her small hands balled into even tinier fists.

    "Sessori . . . " he spoke in a whiny voice, not caring that it was the third time he'd said it in the past minute. He opened his mouth to say more, but stopped at the sight of wet droplets hitting the pavement beneath their feet.

    Sessori, emotionless, anti-social, blunt, uncaring, rutheless Sessori, was crying.

    Taken by surprise for the second time that day, Sessora blinked, as if to make sure he hadn't imagined the liquid spilling from her cheeks. Sighing, he engulfed his sister in hug, wrapping his arms protectively around her as she clutched his shirt and sobbed into his chest. They stood like that for a good five minutes or so, Sessora stroking her hair and rubbing soothing circles into her back before her eyes finally ran dry and her small form stopped shaking.

    "Shhh . . . it's okay . . . " he murmured in a low, calming voice. "It's okay . . . " He lightly pushed her back, just enough so that he could slide his hand under her chin and force her once again to give him eye contact. With his free hand he brought it up to her delicate face and brushed the tears away. "Now," she raised his voice to speak more firmly, but not enough for anyone else to overhear their conversation, though many tried. Her little outburts had caused quite a startled among the students who still remained around the school campus, and those left were whispering in groups and casting curious looks their way. But they didn't notice, nor did they care. At the moment, all that mattered to them was each other. "You going to tell what's the matter?"

    Eyes still glistening, Sessori finally replied. "I . . . I can't stand seeing you with her!" Before he got a chance to comment, she kept talking, the desperation in her voice bringing her on the verge of hysteria. "I know it's not rational! I know it's not right! But it's how I feel! I just . . . " Her desperation died down and a feeling of confusion and loss took it's place. "I just don't understand . . . It's driving me crazy . . . "

    If Sessora thought he was surprised before, it was nothing compared to how he felt now.

    "Wait . . . what? You don't understand what? What's driving you crazy?"

    Impossibly, Sessori's eyes watered again. Apparently she wasn't completely dehydrated yet.

    Sessora groaned. "Look, I didn't mean anything by that! I just meant--!" Way to go, dude, tell her you didn't mean anything than explain what you meant. Smart, he thought sarcastically to himself as he spoke, "It's just that . . . you're so quiet all the time. Suddenly breaking down and spilling everything . . . well, it's confusing for me. It's just hard for me to follow. It's not that I don't feel the same--I do! I mean! I don't! I mean--" He stopped mid-sentence as his sister jerked her head up, eyes wide, and--since he was still within very close proximity of her--Sessora could tell she was holding her breath, though more likely than not, she didn't know it herself.

    "Sessori," he spoke for the umpteenth time that hour, "breathe." Obediently, she let out a gasp of air, her breathe fanning across her brother's face. He closed his eyes and took a slow, deep breathe of air himself, taking in the air she had breathed out not two seconds ago. Though the majority of it was unusable carbondioxide, it smelled even sweeter and fresher than if he had inhaled from the middle of an exotic rainforest. It messed with his head, making him even more confused than before. Trembling slightly, eyes still closed, he commanded in a shaky voice "Now . . . tell me, slowly, what are you trying to say?"

    After some thought, Sessori had finally found the words she had been searching for.

    "When I am with you . . . I do not feel so alone . . . I feel like . . . I am cared for . . . wanted . . . and . . . loved . . . I feel . . . that I may not be cursed after all . . . that I am special not because of my gift . . . but beacuse I am . . . me." She paused, and as she continued her voice gained a strength never before heard in it. "I feel like there is hope. Hope that we may not be all alone in this world. That there are others out there like us. That our parents love us, even though they say they do not. I feel like . . . " she trailed off again, her voice softening. "Like I love you. Not only as a brother, but as something more."

    His eyes snapped open, and he felt as though he was about to have a heart attack.

    "And I hope . . . that you love me back."

    Though this was the most confused either of them had ever been in their entire life--the life that they shared--it all seemed clear to the both of them. At that moment, Sessora pushed all the swirling thoughts to the very back of his mind, stuffing them in a box and locking them away to deal with later, he bent down and captured her lips with his in a soft, sweet kiss.

    After a moment of bliss he broke away, resting his forehead against hers, taking in shaggy, uneven breaths. He didn't know how much time passed. Seconds, minutes, could have been hours and we still couldn't have known the difference, before Sessori finally spoke, her voice that of a whisper.

    "I thought you said you did not feel the same?"

    Another amount of immeasurable time passed, only this one seemed to strech on forever. At long last, he responded, and his words were barely audible over the sound of their punding hearts, beating in unisen.

    "I was wrong . . . "