Outside, the storm clouds were gathering as the rain started to fall, slowly at first and then picked up speed like a Taiko Drummer at a festival. The wind made the trees sway as their branches scratched at the window.

            Yueiko sighed as his forehead lay against the cool glass surface. The twenty-eight year old man’s once tanned skin was pale because of all the time he spent indoors now. His autumn colored hair was a mess and seemed dull as his hazel-green eyes were red from the lack of sleep.

            “Hitoshi,” Rena said turning around to face her husband. She was twenty-two years old with long blonde-silver hair and dark blue-black eyes. “He’s got to stop this. She’s gone and he can’t do a thing.”

            She would only call him by his whole first name if it was serious. But he knew it was anyway. He sighed; the twenty-seven year old ran his hand through his brown-black hair. It was cut recently and came to his neck now, not mid back. His multicolored eyes clouded with concern, looking over at his mourning friend.

            “Rena, I know. But we can’t do a thing. He won’t even let us.”

            “I might just shoot him…” she grumbled, thinking about the crossbow Hitoshi used for practice.

            “No way, you’re not going anyway near it,” he pointed his finger like she was four years-old. “You’ve got really bad aim.”

            “I didn’t mean to shoot your horse!” she muttered back. “Can’t you forget it? It was a year ago!”

            He shook his head ‘no’, smiling slightly, and she grumbled, leaving the room. Hitoshi walked up to Yueiko and put his hand on his shoulder. He slowly turned and blinked.

            “Hitoshi?” Yueiko asked.

            “Yue,” Hitoshi called him by the nickname he used. “You have got to let go.”

“I can’t…” he whispered. “I just can’t.”

Hitoshi sighed, patting his friend’s shoulder and left him by himself. He couldn’t tell him it would be alright. He himself would be at that state if Rena was gone, so he would just have to let Yueiko get through it himself. He just hoped he was doing the right thing.

Yueiko closed his eyes, leaning against the wall. They meant well, but he just couldn’t let it go.

            Zien laughed as Yueiko tickled her sides from behind. Her usually tied black hair was loose from the band and flung around like black water, reflecting in the sun. Her light hazel eyes glittered with a few tears.

            “Co-me on Yue-chan! S-top!” she said in between laughs.

            “Just for that, I’ll keep going!”

            He continued to tickle her until they both tired and sat under a tree; Zien from the lack of air and Yueiko from all her thrashing.

            Zien sighed happily from getting some air and laid her head on his shoulder. Yueiko smiled and put his head on top of hers.

            “Yue-kun…” she said.

            “Hmm?”

            “What’s it like to see?”

            “What?” he asked. “What are you talking about Zi?”

            “Yueiko,” she said closing her eyes. “I’m blind.”

            She did love the rain, he thought randomly to himself. That was the first time he actually knew she was blind. He didn’t notice before. She couldn’t be the blind one, it was him. He didn’t even notice.

            She thought I wouldn’t love her anymore…

            “Zien! Zien!” Yueiko called over the crowd. The market was filled with more people that usual and it made it hard to catch up to her.

            She didn’t turn around when he called, she just kept going. She expertly weaved her way around people and never once did hit someone with the cane.

            Yueiko caught sight of her back and noticed she was making an effort to avoid everyone. Even me Zien? He asked himself.

            Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a cart in front of her direction rolling down the hill. Everyone who saw it ran or jumped just in time out of its path. The crowd in front of her vanished suddenly, but she didn’t take note of it. She just kept going. Yueiko leaped around people as fast as he could; with all these people around, she couldn’t hear the wooden wheels on the sandy streets.

            Like lightning hitting a tree, Zien knew she was in danger with no way out. She could jump in any direction since the stalls were on both sides. She panicked but suddenly, she was grabbed and knocked from the side. She could hear a painful grunt from someone near and then the loud splintering of wood and metal.

            The storm calmed down and the angry grey clouds cleared as the light from the sun looked only like a small pin prink against the inky sky. The stars came out and slowly, the moon came over the horizon. The moon was in its crescent stage and hung like a hook.          

            All this and Yueiko was still standing at the window looking out to the world, but not being in it.

            “Zien, please say something,” Yueiko said sitting next to her. He brought her back to the hill, where they were a few days ago, after he convinced her to go with him.

            She was silent and sat with her legs to the side, her right had was playing with a rose Yueiko got before they came. Her fingers felt the soft petals and she sighed.

            “What do you want me to say?” Zien asked.

            “I want you to tell me why you’re trying to avoid me ever since you asked that question,” Yueiko told her. He placed his hand over her hand with the rose. “Also… what’s wrong?”

            Her hand ceased moving and he moved his hand to take hold of hers, squeezing it slightly.

            “I didn’t know if you… if you still loved me... that you might leave me.”

            “I would never,” Yueiko said as he wrapped his arms around her, breathing in her scent of autumn. “Would you leave me?”

            She smiled slightly. “Never.”

            She did though.  She left when she died. She was so pale… his mind could recall everything that was in that one moment just before she passed away.

            “You never did give me that one last dance Yue,” a female voice said behind him.

            He turned around and saw no once there. This is wonderful, he thought sarcastically. Now I’m hearing things. Hitoshi was right to be worried.

            “Close your eyes…”

            Yueiko sighed. What the heck not, hm? He was starting to go insane, he thought he was, so why not keep going?

            He closed his eyes and immediately felt something different. His clothes felt different. Like it was the dark blue, high collared tunic with the slightly puffy sleeves and his pants were the black ones that were tucked into his boots.

            Suddenly, he felt solid hands on both with shoulders; someone was facing him.

            “Yueiko, please give me this one last dance?”

            It was her. Her voice… Zien. How?

            “I told you I never left Yue-chan,” she said. “How could you forget?”

            But I didn’t…

            “Oh, I see. You didn’t believe it did you? Yue, Yue, Yue. What are we going to do with you?” she said joking.

            He was about to open his eyes but felt weight on them. Her hand was over them.

            “I’m sorry love, but you can’t. I can only be here if you didn’t see,” she said sadly. “Don’t say anything Yueiko. I just want this one last dance.”

            He smiled, understanding. He gave her a nodded and started to move to the left as he felt her hands in his. Music played somewhere, the sounds of violins and harps filling his ears.

            The melody was sad, yet held happiness, just like hope does. It was her favorite song, as he remembered now.

            They twirled around in a circle and he gently dipped her down. His eyes were closed, but he felt the air rush past and heard a slight ruffle sound; Zien was wearing a dress now.

            He pulled her upright and moved her again before lifting her hand in to air and twirled her in a small circle. Her long hair brushed passed him and he smelled roses; she had a rose or two in her hair.

            This must be what it was like for her before, he thought. Never seeing colors of things in life, but only being able to feel and hear them.

            The song went to a slower pace, slowing down, to the end.

            “I’ll never really be gone Yueiko,” she said. She stopped and gave him a light kiss on the lips that made them tingle and his heart race. “Never forget I love you.”

            “Goodbye…” her voice trailed and he opened his eyes once more.

            Her presence was gone, but his previous clothes as he danced remained. A single full bloomed rose remained where she was before.

            “Goodbye…”