"This world is cruel and painful. Humans don't care for one another if they have nothing to gain from them. It's strange to see that someone cares for no apparent reason at all. So why? Why does she "care"? There has to be some ulterior motive behind that so-called innocent smile of hers... I will figure out what you're hiding Ms. Nanashi Mumei." Fauna thought as she sat alone at the kitchen table sipping her hot green tea.

"Oh hey, Fauna! How are you doing?" Said Mumei as she walked down the stairs, noticing Fauna sitting alone.

"Hey, Mumei. I'm doing just fine." Replied Fauna.

"Speak of the devil..." Thought Fauna as Mumei showed up while she was thinking about her.

"That's good! By the way- are you busy at the moment?" Mumei said as she made her way to sit down near Fauna.

"No not in particular. What's up?" Replied Fauna.

"Soooooo I was thinking about going out to do some shopping for the dorm since we are kinda running low on groceries right now. I didn't really want to go alone but the others aren't home right now... sooooo can you pretty please go shopping with me?" Asked Mumei as she sat down next to Fauna.

"Uhhhh I'll think about it..." Replied Fauna.

"Pretty pleaseeeeeeeeeeeee?" Said Mumei while giving Fauna puppy eyes.

"Well if you say it with those eyes... then I don't think I can refuse-" Fauna replied hesitantly.

"Yay! Thank you so much!" Said Mumei excitedly.

"Anytime-" Replied Fauna.

"Shall we get going?" Asked Mumei.

"Yeah sure- let me just get ready real quick-" Replied Fauna.

"Okiiii" Replied Mumei.

"This is the perfect opportunity to figure out her motives." Thought Fauna as she went upstairs to change.

A few minutes went by as Fauna changed and Mumei waited patiently. When Fauna walked down the stairs, the two chatted a bit and departed on their adventure. The two idly chitchatted as they made their way to the local market.

"What we're you planning on buying anyway?" Asked Fauna as they arrived at the market.

"Just some fruits, some veggies, some eggs, a bit of rice, and whatever else that we find as we shop." Replied Mumei as she spotted a place selling Japanese teas.

"Like that!" Said Mumei as she pointed to the shop.

"Didn't think you would be the type that liked tea Mumei." Replied Fauna.

"Huh? What's that supposed to mean?" Replied Mumei with a slightly annoyed tone.

"N-nothing..." Replied Fauna as they made their way into the shop.

The two spent half an hour together shopping for assorted Japanese teas. After they decided on the type of teas they wanted, the two proceeded to the cash register and paid for the teas.

"Can you hold these for a sec? I need to go use the bathroom-" Asked Mumei.

"Yeah sure." Replied Fauna.

"Thank you!!!" Said Mumei as she handed Fauna the bags.

"Damnit... Why haven't I found the truth behind that smile yet." Thought Fauna holding the bags.

"I'll just have to make her slip up." Thought Fauna as she heard a voice call from afar.

"No way. Fauna is that you?" Said the mysterious voice entering the door.

She turned her head to spot a familiar boy with golden topaz-colored eyes and light green hair. Her eyes suddenly became dull and her expression turned horrified.

"It's been so long Fauna. How've you been?" Said the green-haired boy.

"I've b-been f-fine-" Replied Fauna stuttering.

"That's good. It's been a while. Maybe we should catch up sometimes." Said the green-haired boy.

"I d-don't t-think t-that w-would be a g-good i-idea-" Replied Fauna in a terrified voice.

"Why's that Fauna? Wouldn't it be great to catch up with one another after this all this time?" Asked the green-haired boy as he grabbed Fauna's arm.

"L-let go..." Replied Fauna trying to pull her arm out of the boy's grip.

"Why? You used to love it when I did this." Replied the boy in a cold tone.

"P-please... l-leave me a-alone..." Said Fauna frozen and mortified.

"I don't think I will." Replied the boy as he inched his head towards Fauna's.

"LET GO OF HER!" Yelled Mumei as she spotted Fauna terrified.

The boy turned around and said in a pissed voice, "And who exactly do you think you are?"

"I'm your worst nightmare." Replied Mumei as she sprinted towards the two with her fists clenched.

"That's really scary of you. I'm so scared!" Said the boy in a mocking tone as he let go of Fauna.

"What exactly do plan to do? Throw a sandwich at me?" Said the boy mocking Mumei as she came closer.

"Shut up." Replied Mumei as she slapped the boy with all of her frustration.

"You bitch." Yelled the boy as he rubbed his face.

Mumei grabbed Fauna's hand and took off like the wind.

"Who was that jerk?" Asked Mumei while she held Fauna's hand and ran.

Fauna stayed silent.

"Don't force yourself to tell me anything you aren't comfortable with sharing." Said Mumei as they stopped by a nearby bench.

"T-thanks Mumei." Said Fauna as the two sat down on the benches.

"No problem!" Replied Mumei.

"Anyways shall we go home?" Asked Mumei.

"What about the groceries?" Asked Fauna.

"Don't worry about them. You're clearly uncomfortable being out here. Wouldn't want you going back when that jerk is probably still around. Also, I can always just go buy them later." Replied Mumei with a smile.

Fauna blushed as her heart begin to flutter.

"Y-yeah let's get going-" Said Fauna.

Mumei grabbed Fauna's hand and the teas they bought. Fauna's heart pounded intensely as the two made their way home hand in hand.

"Why did this have to happen like this? I swore to never fall in love again... so tell me why. Why is it happening again?" Thought Fauna flustered beyond belief.

Author's Notes: Thank you for reading chapter 8! I want to just thank everyone for all of the support! Didn't think I would ever get this many views or votes... So big thanks to everyone that decided to read this story! Also for anyone wondering about this stories' update schedule. The next two chapters should be released tomorrow and the day after respectively. After that, I'm going to start updating every Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and sometimes Sunday (depending on if I was able to finish the chapter). There's no specific time I will be updating the story, it's just whenever I'm finished and satisfied with the chapter.

Note: The days line up with American standards.