Hikaru's P.O.V

"These job fairs are so stupid," Kaoru scoffed as we roamed the school's campus. It was almost the end of our last fall semester; graduation would be here soon. After that, Kaoru was going to America. He had been offered a part in a movie. I...I don't know what I was going to do. I had studied interior design and fashion, probably destined to follow in the footsteps of my mother. I wondered if A.J. would have pushed me to do something else; maybe she would have talked me into finding something I loved and pursuing a career in that field. I often found myself thinking about her. Where she was, how she was doing. I let my gaze drop to the ground with disappointment as we walked into the parking lot. I hoped I would walk out to my car one day and she would be sitting on the hood, her ash-brown hair tossed over her shoulder carelessly, one hand fidgeting with her lip piercing-- or maybe the stud in her nose-- and the other holding a cigarette, smiling eagerly as she waited for me. But those days never came. "Earth to Hikaru! What do you want for lunch?" Kaoru snapped his fingers in my face, dragging me away from my fantasies. I shrugged and threw my bag in the back seat, plopping in the passenger seat as the engine purred quietly. The car was a high school graduation gift from Mom, of course we shared it. I leaned my head against the window and closed my eyes, thinking back to the last memory I had of her...

*flashback*
"Hikaru! What are you doing here?" Jeanie had asked when she opened the door. I sighed and had to lean against the door frame for support. Kaoru said he would be leaving in an hour if I still wanted to go. We were moving on campus today, about an hour away. I had ran all the way to A.J.'s, so there went forty-five minutes. "A-Ad-Adrienne," I panted. She opened the door wider and pointed toward her niece's room. I thought she would have been mad at me, but Jeanie only looked sad. I nodded and pushed off of the door frame with all the strength I had left, jogging to her room. I burst in through the door and everything looked so bare. There was a small pile of luggage in the corner, all full of A.J.'s stuff. The door to the balcony was open and there she was: her hair was pulled back in a messy bun and she was in a black hoodie and a pair of sweatpants. She didn't realize I was there until I was standing right behind her. "What are you doing here, Hikaru?" she whispered, not even turning to look at me as she took a drag off her cigarette. I moved so that I was standing next to her, staring at the city below. I saw her make a sour face and flick the entire cigarette over the rail. "I-I wanted to say I'm sorry," I stammered. I hadn't talked to her since graduation, when I broke up with her. She let out a ragged laugh and shook her head, a few stray hairs falling around her face. I wanted nothing but to tuck those locks behind her ear and pull her into my arms. "You broke up with me two months ago. I haven't seen or heard from you since. And now you want to apologize?" she scoffed. Her words were not filled with malice or resentment, only hurt. "I'm leaving today," I murmured, "but I don't want to. I would stay, if you wanted me to." She ran a hand through her hair and sighed. She looked like she had aged years, not months, and it was my fault. "Hikaru, you were right. You can't just put your life on hold for me. You want to see the world, make something of yourself. You can't do that with me," she said. She was trembling now, and I was afraid that if I said anything more, she would just shatter completely. Who was I to destroy and crush this innocent girl? This girl that I loved with all my heart. "I love you, but you need to go. I was stupid and wrong, and you were right. No one finds their soulmate in high school," she chuckled darkly, all traces of emotion gone. "You go live your life, and I'll go live mine. I'm going back to America this weekend. It's...easier that way." Numb and brokenhearted, I turned around and left. I was too late. No more late night texts and phone calls, no more at-home picnics or weekend trips out of town, no more reaching out at night and wrapping my arms around her, no more of those big hazel eyes gleaming as I leaned in for a kiss. No more 'I love you'. It really was goodbye.
*flashback ends*

We got back to school just as the sponsors for the job fair were leaving. Kaoru and I parted ways in the middle of the courtyard-- he was heading to drama and I was off to my art class. I heard someone curse and turned around to see a woman in a black pencil skirt and a white blouse trying to take down her stand. Her heels were tossed aside, one of them broken, and she was having trouble folding the table. Her arms and legs were fully tatted up. I looked around, but everyone else was gone or too far away to notice. "Ma'am? I'll help you with that," I sighed as I ran over to her. I slid the legs to one side down, waiting for her to fold the other side so I could pick it up for her. She wasn't moving. I froze, hesitating to look up. "Hikaru?" she whispered. That voice shot a spear straight through my heart and I looked up at her, really looking this time. Her lip piercing and most of her ear piercings were gone, but the stud in her nose was a small black spike, and she wore a pair of black wire-rimmed glasses. Her light brown hair was streaked with pale blonde highlights and twisted into a tight bun, her bangs parted to the left and hanging down past her eyes. She smiled, and my heart leaped into my throat. "What? Don't recognize me?" she taunted, her pouty lips stretching into a smirk as she spoke with that strong Cajun drawl. It was like she had never left. "A-Adrienne!" I exclaimed much louder than I had meant to, dropping the table on my foot. I winced and she giggled, picking up the table on her own. "Everyone else done cleared out real quick, I guess. I gotta take this back to where it goes," she murmured, heaving it toward the door. I picked up a stack of pamphlets she had dropped and ran after her. "And then what? A.J., it's been so long! A-are you free? Maybe I could take you to grab a bite or something," I tripped over my words as I fought to keep up with her. She had-- very literally-- just walked back into my life, and I was scared that she would disappear again. "Free as in 'I have nothing to do'? Yeah. But shouldn't you be in class?" she chided, a playful smile tugging at the corners of her mouth. I helped her lift the table into the storage room, piling it on top of the other tables, and shrugged nonchalantly. "I'm an honors student. Missing one dumb class won't kill me," I replied. She rolled her eyes and motioned for me to follow her. She carried her heels with one finger; I hadn't even realized she picked them up. I was just so focused on her that nothing else mattered. She led me back to the parking lot and dug in the pocket of her shirt, pulling out a set of keys. We stopped in front of a shiny black SUV. The make and model, I couldn't really recall, nor did I care. As soon as she unlocked the door I scrambled in, quickly buckling up. I felt like this was God's idea of a cruel joke. I was waiting for her to vanish again.

"So...how have you been?" she asked, her voice soft yet careful, like if she said the wrong thing I would jump out of the car. "I'm fine, I guess. After my finals are over, I've got one semester left until I graduate and go home to help, you know, 'run the family business'. Kaoru is going to America; he's gonna be an actor," I sighed. She nodded politely and glanced at me as if to say, "Oh really?" I fidgeted in my seat. I hadn't been this nervous around her since before we had started dating. "What about you? What happened after you, um-- after you left?" I inquired, never taking my eyes off of her. She drove with one hand on the steering wheel and used the other to pull her glasses up and rest them on top of her head. She looked so much older, so much wiser, but she was still gorgeous. She was still little A.J., with a taste for rock music and one hell of a right hook. She smiled slightly as she made her way through town, her eyes glued to the road. "Let's see...I moved back to America. I stayed in a nice little apartment while I went to school online. I had quite a bit of cushion to hold me over financially. Three years ago, I got my business license and took out a loan from the bank, and decided to open my own business. It started off something small, just a tee-tiny building where we held fundraisers and helped troubled youth. But I decided I wanted to do more than just help kids; I wanted to change the world," her voice was no longer that deep twang that flowed as thick as honey; it was a sharp, professional tone, something that had taken practice. "So I expanded. I've made many connections all over the world, but most of my colleagues are here, so a couple months ago I decided to relocate. The Heart of Saint Evangeline is a very prosperous organization, despite it being so new. I admit, for the entire first year, we-- and by we I mean me and the handful of people I had employed-- were solely non-profit. I paid them and kept them employed by paying out of my own pocket. I started waiting tables so that I could get by myself. Keeping Heart of Evangeline up and operating always came first. Takashi Morinozuka and Mitskuni Haninozuka are big contributors to my Helping Hands division. They offer education, recreational activities, and fundraisers to help underprivileged kids. Our Christmas drives are more than successful every year." My eyes widened for a moment and I couldn't stop myself from interrupting, "Honey-senpai? Doesn't he run a dojo?" She glanced at me out of the corner of her eye and smirked. "Yes, but I work very closely with him. The recreational activities? That's all thanks to him. He has opened several dojos in the Haninozuka name, not just in Japan, that give juvenile delinquents a chance to work off their anger and frustration by putting it into something productive. I have established a great business relationship with the Ootori family and their hospitals and faculty for families who can't afford health care. Not to mention, Kyoya and I have began a program with their police force to help victims of domestic violence, abuse, and rape. And Tamaki Suoh is the head of my Community Homes division, which provides homeless families with shelter. In the past year alone we have built houses for over 500 homeless families and opened 75 shelters worldwide. And my lovely business partner, Haruhi Suoh--"

"Why am I not surprised that your business partner is Haruhi? Wait, you said Suoh?! When did they get married?" I blurted. She raised an eyebrow at me, fighting back her smile, and sighed, "You asked what happened to me and I'm answering. By the way, they got married in July. Anyway, Haruhi is the one who convinced me to relocate." I chuckled and ran a hand through my hair. "You weren't joking when you said you wanted to change the world. Is there anything you don't do?" She tapped her chin with her index finger, thinking hard. "Um...we don't have any rehabilitation centers or programs for addicts, but Auntie is gonna help me with that," she finally replied. "Of course!" I grinned. "You are just so amazing. But I'm still curious. You've spent the last three years basically being Superwoman. Has anyone came to claim you?" We stopped in front of a small restaurant and she cut the engine, looking at me with shock. "You mean am I married? No, never," she answered, making a face that signaled marriage was the last-- and worst-- thing on her mind. "Et toi? You ever find you a nice girl you wanted to settle down with?" she sighed. I smiled and leaned over the center console, so close that I could smell the heady mix of green apple and lilies radiating from her. "I did," I murmured. "I met her in high school, and I've loved her about that long, too." She breathed out a soft laugh and moved away from me, opening her car door. "Let's hope you still think so," she mumbled as she got out and walked into the restaurant we had parked in front of.

*Et toi? = And you?

I'm just so excited to be writing this sequel. If you're new to my page, it's not required, but I suggest you go back and read Something's Gotta Give first. If you've already read it and you're back for more, I thank you so very much for experiencing this story and the way it's turned out with me. Enjoy! ^_^