Clicking away at the mouse, she pulled away from the computer with a resigned sigh. ‘This is FRUSTRATING!’ Rubbing fingers over tired eye muscles felt like heaven. ‘I’ll never get this round done.’ Not one to give up and quit in the middle of a game, her resolve hardened.

Looking at the clock before reaching for the mouse again, she only had twenty minutes left on her break. ‘Should be PLENTY of time to finish this.’ She figured. Chocolate eyes narrowed. ‘I am not using my HINTS either.’ Finally seeing a move, a triumphant smile popped up, the mouse clicking away again.

Coming out of his office, eyes on a few papers for Diva to work on, his ears were assaulted with a load of soft clicks. Looking up curiously, he was confused. ‘I thought she said she was taking a BREAK?’

Through the entire time they worked together, he made sure she took at least ten minutes out of the day to eat and/or relax. She thankfully stuck to the routine, though she never left the front desk.

A small smile came to his face. A few times, he managed to pry her away and to his office. He asked her to teach him a few basic words in Spanish, just in case she started spouting off for some strange reason. She only smirked, but agreed. He now knew how to count and say an extremely small number of small, but complete phrases successfully.

Stopping within eyesight of her desk, his eyebrow rose. She was staring at her computer screen with a small thoughtful look to her beautiful eyes. It made her look older than she normally did.

Shaking his head with a small smile to dislodge any thoughts, he slowly waltzed to her work area, curious at what she was working on.

Leaning back again from dead time, she rubbed her eyes again, weary from staring at the computer screen so much. ‘Though it’s no different from any OTHER time I look at it.’

Pulling the hand away, her eyes slowly opened to her monitor. A green background shone; small, multi-colored pieces stacked in a strange pattern. Eyes narrowed as she tried to find a pair to click on, to continue with the game, to complete it and get the fortune at the end. That was the goal, to find out what the fortune said to the champion.

“What’re you playing?”

Jumping, she whirled the chair around and met his eyes. Sighing deeply when she saw him, a hand came out, playfully swatting his arm. “Don’t DO that!” She nearly shouted.

He flinched through a smile, fighting laughter.

She smiled widely and leaned back in her seat from the sudden adrenaline rush. Turning back to the computer, she found another pair and quickly clicked it away.

His eyes narrowed from the unfamiliar game. “So...you going to ANSWER me?” He asked amused, looking around her head. Walking to her side, he rested a hand on the desk and leaned against it, looking at the screen as she played.

“Tai Pei.” She said nonchalantly. “You find two pairs that don’t have tiles in front or over them and click them away.” She instructed, showing him as she clicked another pair gone. She smiled slightly in triumph, only half a dozen pairs left and all easy to get to.

“The object of the game is to get all pairs off the screen and get to the fortune at the end.” Quickly making the last pair disappear, a fortune popped up. “Humph, well of COURSE I win Tai Pei.” She said, hoping there was something better than ‘congratulations on winning Tai Pei!’

His head shook, amused at her silly behavior. But the game looked like fun and he mentally planned on asking her to have the game downloaded to his computer in the office before the two left today. “Well, I just came to drop these off for you to retype.” He said, tapping the papers playfully over her head.

Looking up with a smile, she took them with a playful scowl. Deep brown eyes looked over the contracts, finding a few spelling errors in them. An eyebrow rose.

“Wow, who did THESE?” She asked sarcastically, already setting them on top of the pile. ANYTHING Quatre handed her came FIRST.

Turning to face him again, she smiled pleasantly at him. “Anything ELSE you needed Quatre sir?”

He tried to scowl through an emerging smirk. She was toying with his notions of using his first name. And from the wry grin she gave, she KNEW she was doing it to get a rise out of him. An eyebrow rose and a hand moved to the top of her head, mussing up her hair before she pulled away with a small cry.

“NOT the hair!” She nearly whined, protectively covering it with both hands. He chuckled softly and walked around the receptionist’s desk, intent on getting back to work. Running both hands through her hair again, she checked the clock and started another game since she had enough time to do so.

~*~*~

Casually taking the long way back to his somewhat lonely office, his mind wandered to the spunky girl he’d gotten to know. Sure he STILL didn’t know her past or reason for working so many hours every day and almost all weekend, but he knew the little things about her and that’s what mattered most to him.

She COVETED her hair...mostly because it was so thick and hard to manage. He smirked. And he tried to mess it up as much as he could whenever she gave him just cause.

Screwing with the formalities and his name was another one. The past week had been QUITE the trial for her to openly say his first name. This last week had been so easy for her, though she slipped up one day and called him Quatre sir. Now, she playfully added the last half whenever possible. Although it still went in accordance with both their wishes, he STILL wanted the second half banished from his name.

Chuckling, he gently pushed the door open and shut it softly behind him. ‘We work really well together.’ He thought, going to his desk to throw away the remains of his lunch. Over the small amount of his only free time, he went through the contracts for a meeting later today, in case they needed to be redone. Sure enough, a few errors caught his eye and he figured it better to be safe than sorry in matters such as binding laws.

After picking everything up, he found a rare spare minute in his hectic schedule. Serenely walking to the large window, hands clasped behind him, blue eyes stared down at the city of L-4.

His mind backtracked again to how far he’d come in the business. It was all running smoothly now, thanks to his hard earned hours at the office. That and the dedication of his staff to help update him on the past transactions and happenings since his father opened the business. Now, he knew it all and that was how it should be.

He blinked slowly as his thoughts veered off. The help of his crew... ‘Diva...’ He thought fondly.

She sure was a piece of work alright. Knowing her nickname now, he used it whenever possible, finding it a proper spoof of her real one. The background that came with it also served as further proof. ‘With her SPEAKING voice, I could only imagine how she SINGS.’

Through the entire time they worked on working together, and her to try and open up to him, she confided a lot of little details. She adored singing ever since she knew what it was and loved to sing. She often played the piano and had a further interest in a few other musical instruments, since her skills with one could adapt to others.

‘I should invite her over to play sometime.’ He thought with a small smile.

She had three brothers, two elder and one almost two years younger than her. Finding she was from a relatively large family, although entirely biological, allowed a small connection all the same for him. He could understand what it was like to be the only child in one’s gender, his other siblings being all girls and women.

‘It must be hard to connect with all boys.’

He knew that trying to find something in common with his sisters was always easy, but that was because he grew up somewhat a gentle child with an easy childhood. ‘Though defining EASY would be a hard task to do.’ He thought, eyes clouding over darkly.

Turning from his post, long legs purposely strode to the desk to get to work, to deliberately keep busy. He had enough time to think of old memories and hopefully banish them from existence. Anything up till the end of the war was not something he cherished; the only saving grace OF the war was meeting the other pilots.

Sitting at his desk, he shuffled through any unfamiliar pages, to find something to do. ‘I’m not proud of what I’ve done.’ He thought resigned. ‘But at least I’ve done something to CHANGE who I am.’

Slumping back in the chair with a heavy heart, one hand propped his chin up as he tiredly closed his eyes. His personality was such a change from before the war. He was never proud of what he was, but having met Rashid and the other Maganacs gave him purpose, gave him...pride.

‘Pride...’ Blue eyes slowly opened and took in his father’s lengthy, plush office. Pulling his chin away from his fingers, he stood and went to the bookcase. Knowing that he never really knew his father always left a small hole in his heart, one he knew could never be fixed. Stopping in front of the cherry mass, the blond head bowed with sad eyes.

‘But I can know his personality by just being in this room.’ Those beautiful eyes looked around again, taking in the small quirks that made up the man Mr. Winner was. He hadn’t wanted to move anything out of the room, even if he didn’t like it.

Looking at the bookshelf, one hand ran down the paperback titles, looking for an interesting one to read. Even the fiction books were kept, giving a hint to his father’s tastes.

Pulling one particularly interesting one from its resting spot, he sat on the couch and stretched out, opening it to page one. Damned the meetings; damned the ever-present paperwork. They would always be there. Now was a time where he was going to RELAX and do something to indulge himself.

Now that he was caught up on this frenzied business world of polite conversation and backbreaking hours, he was going to take the time and finally read one of the books. All had just sat unused for so long. Now he had a chance to ENJOY himself.

~*~*~

She started her routine walk home just after six, by Quatre’s order of course. He made sure she got out when he did, mostly since she was able to finish work by then. Her lips pursed slightly. ‘He does that just so I can’t stay any longer.’

A small yawn made its way through, but was quickly covered up. ‘Though, I DO tend to work till the wee hours anymore.’ She slightly grinned. The walk took a little longer since she was a little more tired than normal, though the scenery of the neighborhood was admired a little in the process. She never thought the area she lived in TRASHY, just a little run down. With the war being over and all, no one really had the time OR money to fix it up.

‘That seems to be the trend even out HERE.’ She thought, looking at the pavement as she slowly walked on.

Finally locking the deadbolts after her, she kicked off her heels with a vow to pick them up tomorrow morning. Leaning against the doorway tiredly, she yawned again, letting this one roam free. In her own abode, it was given that she didn’t have to be courteous all the time. And in private she was going to act like the slob she was entitled to be.

Pushing away from the door heavily, she trudged to her room to change into something COMFY. Shrugging off the jacket and cotton shirt, she shivered at the blast of cold air. ‘Still, it’s better to be OUT of that thing.’

Tossing it on the bed, she slipped from the pants and let them join the rest of her used suit. ‘Like I don’t wear those ENOUGH.’ Smiling slightly, her eyes widened in pleasure at seeing her sweats and tank lying on the bed next to her suit.

Knowing it was better to pick up the nearly forgotten shoes NOW instead of the morning, she wearily trudged back to the front door. ‘Besides, it might be too dark in the morning to SEE these things.’ She grinned wryly, bending down to grab them.

Standing again, she turned and paused when a small red blinking caught her attention. Fear stabbed her veins, chilling her and sending shivers through her body.

Dropping the shoes, she rushed to the vid phone to check on the message. Now thanking the phone company for allowing free installation of messages, she pressed play on it, crossing her fingers.

Her father’s face popped up. Her heart went out to him immediately. A tired, weary face stared back at her before he attempted a small fatherly smile.

“Hola mi hija. I know you’re at work right now, but I needed to call. I do not mind getting your messaging system, as long as you GET this.” His forehead bent forward to greet a gnarled, weathered hand as lengthy fingers rubbed his sun kissed skin. “Su madre isn’t getting any better as los doctores hoped. You KNOW I hate to call and ask you hija, but the whole reason you LEFT was to provide for la familia.”

He looked at her again, sadness in his eyes. “I need dinero. The doctors are demanding that we pay them before too much longer.” He sighed deeply, as if weighted down with something heavily, perhaps the whole WORLD. “Te amo mi Diva. If you can, call back por favor.”

He managed a semblance of a smile, but it didn’t last long. “If posible, maybe you could talk con su madre.” He gave a small wave and the message stopped.

Immediately keeping the message as new, it popped up as one saved message...dated TWO DAYS ago. She forgot to breath. Wide eyes stared at the letters, feeling shivers pass up her spine.

“Mama...” She breathed, almost too horrified to call back. She knew the risks of taking a job so far away from her home, from her mother. Although she could provide everything they needed financially, she would miss her mother physically and emotionally. She missed them ALL terribly.

Tears welled up in her eyes. Wiping them before any could fall; she took a few deep breaths and returned the call.

“¿Hola?” Came the familiar Spanish accent. “Ah Diva! Where have you BEEN?”

Swallowing harshly, she gravely looked at her eldest brother. “Enrique.” She greeted quickly, accent slipping. “¿Como está mama?” She asked, keeping her fingers crossed out of the vid camera’s sight.

He managed a small smile. “She is okay hermana. She asks for you daily.” His smile faltered. “Pero hay nada that I can do. Everyone has told her that you are in L-4, trabajando por todos. Trying to afford las cuentas.”

She nodded, knowing and LIVING what he was saying.

He sighed, running an agitated hand through his hair. “Los doctores don’t know if she will last much longer, even WITH the treatments they’ve given her.”

“¡No DICE ese!” She harshly bit out. “Madre will MAKE it! She is una peleadora! She would not let something like this get her down.”

Enrique shook his head, knowing his baby sister was still in denial about the whole thing. She had every right to be, but working as much as she did, did not give her time to deal with the harsh reality of LIFE.

“You got your message from padre?” He asked, purposely changing the subject. But with the type of message, that wasn’t straying too far.

She nodded minutely. “I will transfer the credits from my account first thing en la mañana. Everything is closed ahora, but I will call from WORK if need be.”

“Well, los doctores have been hounding us and padre has told them you will get them el dinero as soon as posible.”

She nodded, mentally reminding herself to get it called in. Their funding WOULDN’T be cut off, not if SHE had anything to do with it! And she had EVERYTHING to do with it! If she needed to pay an unexpected visit to Earth to THROTTLE those impatient doctors, so BE it.

“If ANYTHING happens, call me at work.” She pointed, entirely serious. “Tiene el numero.”

He nodded.

She hung up a little later with dread in her heart and slightly cursing her eldest brother. How DARE he say such things about her beloved mother!

‘She WILL make it!’ She vehemently vowed, pulling the covers over her torso. Closing her eyes, she tossed a little before finally giving in to sleep, almost marveling she would get ANY tonight.

~*~*~

She stood in a massive field of tall, shoulder length grass. Wind whipped it around, creative beautiful waves as it blew. Strangely enough, it didn’t touch the immaculate white dress she was wearing or her unbound hair.

Looking down at her attire curiously, she found the dress nearly ankle length with a wide skirt billowing from the waist. A small curve around her collarbone gave away nothing; short sleeves stopping just before her biceps. It was simple and starch white, but somehow she preferred it that way.

Without thought or words, she started walking through the grass, quickly finding she was barefoot. The field seemed to stretch on forever, the blue sky dotted with small puffy clouds. The wind didn’t touch them either, their resting places unmoving.

Her casual walk turned to a trot when she realized she was getting nowhere. The field seemed to stretch on forever and her bobbing head couldn’t find an end to it.

Lengthy legs took her through the field, not getting any burrs or scratches on her small feet. Arms helping to propel movement, the wind still didn’t touch her. What SHE created was from her own movement. The grass didn’t hurt her, didn’t scratch her. It was as if she was invisible, if not for hearing the swishing her dress made as it connected with each blade.

The field abruptly gave way to reddish dust, the grass stopping in a near straight line. She broke through and stopped, looking back at the endless line blankly. Turning back to the bits of weeds and flatlands, she continued walking, arms swinging lazily. Somehow, she knew she had to be somewhere, but getting there was no problem, she had all the time in the world.

During the walk through the dusty wasteland, a tumbleweed blew in the near distance. Once again, her casual walk turned to a trot as she realized the wasteland went on forever.

The red slowly turned to normal brown dust, the weeds and tumbleweeds never changing. A few bushes sprouted up along the way but she discarded them. All she knew is she had somewhere to be.

A small dot on the horizon caught her attention and chocolate eyes locked on it. Arms kept pumping through her run, making that blip a larger size as she got closer.

The area was now all brown dust; weeds, and now grass, more prominent. Previously sparse bushes stuck out more, dotting the horizon. Slowing her run to a walk again, she came to her destination. The wind never stopped blowing, but slowed down to a small breeze, yet still not touching her. Not out of breath in any way, she stopped maybe twenty feet at the large wooden object.

Gleeful child laughter filled her ears, decimating the silence, adding to the breeze’s music. Hands at her sides, eyes unblinking, she stared at the small handful of children as they played on a large set of playground equipment. A small smile brewed as she continued to watch them roughhouse.

“¡Aye Enrique, mira a ESTE!”

Exuberant clambering over monkey bars followed more laughter. The Spanish words hit her ears and her mind immediately switched to the language.

“¡TEN CUIDADO Martin!” Came the worried command.

“No preocupa hermano. Tengolo.” Came a small girlish voice. Little hands stopped the small child, virtually still a baby, before he could crawl from the safety of the baby swing.

“¡Empujame! ¡Empujame!” Came the tiny command. Giving the incessant toddler’s demand, it was happily met, the little girl sitting on the normal swings to watch. Excited squealing sounded as air met the baby’s face.

“¿Niños?”

All four youthful heads quickly turned to the newest voice.

Her vision moved with them, now staring at the backdoor of a two-story, white, Spanish-style house a ways away from the equipment. A young, attractive woman came out the back, smiling widely.

“¿Qué están haciendo?” Her soft voice carried through the wind, through the entire distance clearly.

“¡MAMA!” The four happily shouted in unison.

“Mama,” Asked the only girl, “¿puede la dama jugar con nosotros?” Slim fingers pointed behind her, over where SHE was standing. Proven wrong about being a ghost, she blinked in somewhat apparent shock at being seen. She had thought no one knew she was there.

“Si, si. Ella puede.” The lady said, waving a beckoning hand. The lady smiled her direction and walked to her children, joining them with a youthful smile.

Slowly, she walked over and stopped at the edge of the gravel that covered the equipment floor. The five played on, content to let her join in anytime.

Hearing the youngest shout to be pushed again, she walked over and complied with a serene smile, standing behind him the entire time. His gleeful laughter sounded, making the whole family picture complete. Somehow, she felt like a stranger amongst the inviting youths.

When she looked away from the swinging baby, the four children remained, but the mother was gone. From somewhere, the slow haunting melody of a piano filled the air. Looking up at the sky as if it could show her, brown eyes met nothing but slowly passing clouds.

Brow furrowed, she looked back down, but the play area was now empty. All four children disappeared.

When a beat kicked in, she turned and slowly headed for the backdoor at a snail’s pace, feeling an odd serenity to her soul.

This used to be my playground

This used to be my childhood dream

This used to be the place I ran to

Whenever I was in need of a friend

Why did it have to end?

 The female’s voice also filtered in through the air, seemingly everywhere as was the rest of the music. A sad, but beautiful piece, she listened with rapt attention as she continued to the backdoor.

And why do they always say?

‘Don’t look back; keep your head held high’

Don’t ask them why because life is short

And before you know, you’re feeling old and your heart is breaking

‘Don’t hold on to the past’

Well that’s too much to ask

 Strolling through the backdoor, she walked through rooms but not stopping. The piano drifted a little closer than through the sky, seeming to come from a specific room. Knowing exactly where to go, an even look on her face the entire time, she stopped outside the open door to the music room.

Leaning against the archway, a little girl sat on a piano bench, the mother next to her. Her small body had grown a little, making her age later than when she was on the swing-set.

“Bueno. Bueno hija.” She coached softly

Lengthy curly hair spun as she smiled at her mother, soaking up the praise.

“Tratalo como este.” Plunking a few keys of the same melody, the mother paused and let the daughter try. Giving a small pat on her shoulder, she stood and left the room, saying she’d be back.

Walking into the room, she sat on the piano bench as the little girl continued to practice, continuing the music. Apparently invisible again, she listened with hands pristinely folded over her still immaculate dress.

Eyes gravitated to the piano mallets of the open lid on the grand piano. She listened as the little girl rambled on in Spanish about being a famous pianist when she learned enough and was old enough.

Turning, she looked at the little girl and met startling familiar chocolate eyes. The little girl’s eyes crinkled as she smiled, staring straight at her. “¿Piensa que estoy buena?” She asked, eyes widening a little as she waited.

She smiled and nodded slightly, knowing how much the little girl loved the device in front of her. That full head of curly hair swung around, eyes landing on the door her mother had not returned through. “¿Dónde está mama?” She asked, directing the question at her once again visible person.

Her brow furrowed in sympathy. A slim, grown hand slowly moved from her lap and rested on the young girl’s shoulders. “Su madre no esta volviendo.” She softly, regrettably informed.

Watery brown eyes swung back her way, a sniffle working through the silence. When her small fingers stopped playing, the mysterious haunting song stopped playing as well.

“Mama...” Came the meek little voice. Chubby little arms flung themselves around her waist as she loudly cried.

Closing her eyes in mourning, she hugged the young girl gently, feeling her pain. It was hers as well.

When she pulled back, she met a mirror image of herself with an even face. Her image sniffled, another tear falling from those doe-like eyes. “It’s not right...” She whispered sadly, still holding on in a limp hug. “Mama...” She weakly muttered.

Bowing her head from lack of emotion and utter detachment, her eyes closed to show her sympathy.

Pulling both hands back to her lap, fingers crossed slowly. Looking up again, her twin was gone, the room empty and void of life. Somehow knowing the entire HOUSE was empty, she slowly stood from the piano bench, slowly making for the door. Every move she did was detached and unhurried, like she had all the time in the world.

This used to be my playground, used to be

This used to be my childhood dream

This used to be the place I ran to

Whenever I was in need of a friend

Why did it have to end?

Finally reaching the backdoor, she paused in the middle of the archway, the screen door behind held open by an invisible force. The wind gently swayed the two adult swings, as if someone was still on them. Her eyes fixated on the playground equipment, ears perked to the haunting song as it continued to play.

And why do they always say?

‘No regrets’

But I wish that you were here with me

Well then, there’s hope yet

I can see your face in our secret place

You’re not just a memory

‘Say goodbye to yesterday’

Those are words I’ll never say, I’ll never say

An invisible violin picked up the downtime in the song, creating empty emotions in her heart. Slowly, one foot stepped forward almost in time with the violin’s beat.

Reaching the edge of the playground, she stopped, still staring at the swings. Blinking, she moved to sit on one, staring at the ground. Hands gripped both chains as she rocked a few inches. Looking up, she found the mother staring back at her, mimicking the same position and motions with a small, sad smile.

This used to be my playground, used to be

This used to be our pride and joy

This used to be the place we ran to

That no one in the world could dare destroy

Deep brown eyes solemnly fell to her bare feet, staring transfixed. Ears continuously perked to the song, she was still unable to feel any of the sorrow that transpired through its lyrics and music. It was as if she didn’t belong here somehow.

This used to be our playground, used to be

This used to be our childhood dream

This used to be the place we ran to

I wish you were standing here with me

~*~

This used to be our playground, used to be

This used to be our childhood dream

This used to be the place we ran to

The best things in life are always free

Wishing you were with me...

As the song finished, she bit her lip lightly and looked up. The mother was gone, the swing entirely stopped. Blinking from the sudden solitary feeling, a tear fell from her eye. Her face was still a loss of emotion as she stood from the swing and walked away from the playground, back the way she came. Back to the desolate plains and grassy fields where she started from.

Rapidly blinking, she rolled over and woke up. Lashes touched her cheeks, wet with tears. Sitting up slowly, still surrounded by darkness, one hand went to cup her face, finding tracks present. Realizing she was crying just as she had in the dream, she swallowed harshly.

Bringing both knees up somewhat, her arms crossed over them, her weight shifting forward. The silence was thick, uncomfortable.

She was unable to figure out the whole thing, even though part of her didn’t want to.

‘Madre...’ Her mother had been there, playing with her younger self, teaching her piano when she was still able. Sniffling, another tear fell, creating a straight track down her face. The violin’s melody filled her ears.

Wishing you were here with me...

“Aye mama...” She muttered tearfully, “Te pierdo.”

~*~*~

The next morning she called the bank, minutes after they opened. She made SURE she wrote it down on a note and kept it in her palm even after she reached work. The only problem was, the bank didn’t open until eight and she was forced to call during work, but it was an oversight as far as SHE was concerned.

She made sure that no one was around before even attempting to dial the vid phone. People around knew her problems and could be sympathetic, but she didn’t need anyone worrying more than necessary.

~*~*~

A day passed and she couldn’t help but worry. Enrique, her papa, or her other brothers hadn’t called her work or apartment number and she was thinking of calling them back to see if everything got changed okay.

Tapping her pencil rapidly on the counter, she got a few stares of those leaving to go to lunch. Gripping it with her palm quickly in slightly embarrassment, she looked around idly with a sigh. Her break was in a few minutes, but she planned on taking it now.

‘I am going to call home and see what’s up.’ She thought strongly. Biting her lip, she looked at the clock on her monitor. Two minutes to go. ‘No, I can WAIT those few minutes.’

But those last two minutes were torture to say the least. Her eyes kept looking down at the bottom left of the screen, seeing the seconds slowly tick by. It was as if God was mocking her somehow, trying to tell her to be patient. If she weren’t brought up right, she would’ve said a few choice words about patience.

When the clock FINALLY turned over, her fingers flew to the mouse and brought up her schedule. Marking her time down, she moved to the vid phone, but was stopped by a beeping in her ear.

“Diva?”

Gritting her teeth and slowly closing frustrated eyes, she exhaled an aggravated breath before moving to the monitor and tapped it twice.

“Yes Quatre?” She asked. “Did you need me to pick something up?”

“Well I DO need you to come to my office, but you don’t need to pick anything up.”

Her brow furrowed slightly. “Is something the matter sir?” She asked, not picking up on the slip.

He smiled wryly. “I just wanted to talk to you MA’AM.” He joked. He figured out a strategy for getting her to say his name without thought. If she called him by sir or Mr. Winner, he was going to call her ma’am or Miss Barbados.

An eyebrow rose. “Okay,” She drawled slowly, “I just punched out so I’m free.” Leaving the earpiece on in case someone called, she left the receptionist’s desk.

Stopping in front of his office, she knocked softly before opening it slowly. She knew he didn’t like formalities, but she was STILL going to knock, it was only the polite thing to do; even if he WAS taking a break.

“Did you need something?” She asked again softly.

Ocean blue eyes looked up, tinged with concern when he saw her. Her posture held rigid tones, eyes a blend of impatience and worry.

Nodding, he smiled kindly. “Can you come in and shut the door?” He asked softly.

Wondering at what he was getting at, she cluelessly did as asked and walked in front of his desk. Stopping, she rested fingertips on the thick glass, leaning on them slightly.

He smiled lopsided. “You CAN sit down you know.” He joked, amusement in his eyes.

Nodding slightly, but not smiling, she pulled up a chair and sat down slowly.

The top of her head didn’t allow him to see any emotion on her face, but he sensed something was wrong. Ever since a few days ago, she hardly talked at work, and any pleasantries she exchanged were forced.

He wanted to ask what was bothering her, but she had that look in her eyes, a look that said she didn’t want anyone near her. She didn’t want to deal with whatever was going on inside her, but if she didn’t get out what WAS plaguing her, it would eat her emotions away. And he got her to talk ONCE, he could do it AGAIN.

She sighed through the silence, wondering when he was going to get to the point so she could go call home. Clasping both hands tightly in her lap, she was forced to loosen up when her muscles started cramping.

“Did you need to talk to me about something?” She asked softly, looking at him.

Seeing the serious, haunting emotions in her face, his heart went out to her. He didn’t know what had caused such a dramatic change in her personality, but it was a far cry from what he enjoyed seeing every day.

Leaning both elbows on the desk, his head rested on lightly crossed fingers. “What’s wrong?” He asked softly, looking her dead in the eye.

Those eyes immediately turned timid, quickly glancing to the floor. But he would have none of that introvert behavior, not when she opened up to him before. “Look at me.” He softly ordered.

Knowing enough from the past to obey orders, no matter HOW they were put, she complied.

“What’s wrong?” He asked again, even softer than the last time.

The caring tone and look in his eyes brought tears. Blinking slowly, she willed them away, trying to be strong. She didn’t want to tell him what was going on. He would make her go home and be with her family and that was something she couldn’t afford right now. The entire reason she was here, so far away from home, was to work for the bills required to help heal her mother. If that was possible.

Her tongue darted out to her lower lip and his eyes immediately went to her mouth. Forcefully, he looked back into her eyes, never moving a muscle. He wasn’t going to move or even BLINK, until he found out what was wrong. He didn’t want anyone under his wing unhappy...and right now she was incredibly torn.

Pressing his lips together, he groped for another way to approach it, to try and guess at what was wrong, but he came up a blank. He didn’t know a lot about her background and that fact wasn’t helping him out any.

Fiddling with a nail, she looked down at the glass in between them. Urges to unload the incredible burden she was faced with at such a young age started eating at her tongue, readily putting the words to use. If she only opened her mouth... Tears welled up in her eyes again.

He was picking up desperation from her body language, seeing it in her eyes. Concern etched in his blue depths, he sighed quietly.

Leaning back in his chair, resting both arms on the provided armrests, his head cocked to one side. He had been patient with her because he knew forceful prodding was no use. Kindness and soft determination were the only things that could get her from her shell.

“Divinity.” He softly stated.

She looked up at him, minuscule startled that he moved. She hadn’t noticed.

“I know you want to tell me something, I can see it in your eyes.” Leaning forward again, he rested both arms on the glass surface. “Something is evidently bothering you greatly and if you get it off your chest, you’ll feel better.” He gave a small, gentle smile. “You KNOW you can confide in me and I won’t tell a soul. You’ve done it before, why not again?”

‘There’s no point in keeping a secret that everyone knows about.’ She sullenly thought. Clenching her jaw slightly, one corner of her mouth pursed in a small quirk of a smile.

She wasn’t having problems trying to find the words, but she knew her pride was getting in the way. Just as it had when she was nearly forced to tell Jenny the same thing.

“I’m having problems at home.”

Jenny nodded. “Okay.” She said helpfully. “What kind?”

She blinked, hoping all she had to say was that one statement. But it got a lot off her shoulders and from the hopeful smile on the young girl in front of her, she felt like she WANTED to say something to her. “Well...”

“I’m having problems with my family.” She answered.

He blinked, than nodded.

She looked up, almost stunned. Had she said that out loud or heard it in her head? It was the exact thing she’d told Jenny...

“See? That wasn’t so hard.” He gently joked, giving her a kidding smile.

She looked at him, but didn’t smile back.

“What’s the wrong with your family?”

Biting her inner lip, she felt like she was under interrogation. “Well...the reason I’m ON L-4...it’s because of mi madre...” Her eyes glazed with tears, thinking about the pain her beloved mother was under.

He didn’t need for her to translate, knowing what the words meant. She’d been able to teach him THAT much anyway.

A small beeping in her ear caused a sharp jump from both of them. Even though it was meant for her to hear only, the silence magnified it and allowed him to hear.

Leaning back in his chair in resignation, he nodded, allowing her to take the call. EVERY call was important to the company, no matter how small.

She took a deep breath and let it out quickly before pasting a small smile on her face, hoping it went through her voice. Pushing a delicate button on the tiny device, she went through her introduction politely.

He was amazed at the transformation she went through. It was as if she hadn’t been nearly crying in front of him, close to telling him her problems merely seconds ago.

“Divinity.”

“¿Enrique?” She asked, small surprise in her voice. Eyes widening, she looked at Quatre quickly and stood. Turning, she walked a few steps away. Fear and worry swooped down and claimed her face and posture.

“¿Por qué está llamando? ¿Qué está equivocado??” She asked quickly.

His ears perked up at the accent, but he was unable to translate any of it himself. She hadn’t taught him enough yet. But hearing her voice and the way she paced around in a tight circle, he knew something was wrong. The worry he saw from her the past few days sprung forth for him to see. He was finally witness to whatever was plaguing her...and he didn’t understand a word she was SAYING.

“Aye, Diva...hermana...” Enrique hesitantly began.

Her ear perked from the sadness in his voice. Her walking stopped. Looking at a window with wide, worrisome eyes, her jaw clenched and unclenched rapidly.

He could almost SEE the anxiety radiate from her.

“QUE.” She asked warily. Knowing he would only call for one reason, eyes closed as tears immediately sprang forth. “Me DICElo es noticias buenas.” She nearly pleaded. “POR FAVOR.”

Enrique shook his head sadly, wondering how HE got stuck telling her. “Madre...”

Her eyes opened slowly and her throat convulsed as she tried to suppress sadness. It would do her no good to cry if it DID turn out to be some bad news, but not GRAVE news. Not in front of him or at work. She had to keep a professional exterior, even IF she had wanted her brother to call her at work.

 “Ella se murio este mañana Divinity.”

Her heart seemed to stop beating, the words ringing in her head. Ella se murio...se murio...

“No...” She whispered miserably. Blinking, a tear fell, followed by another, and another. Pressing her lips together in a vain effort to keep control, she fought a losing battle. “No, no es VERDAD Enrique.” She shakily denied, voice cracking slightly. “¡Te DIJE que mama es una PELEADORA! ¡Ella no PUEDE morirse!”

She quickly lost control, and any exterior she could find. Something this horrible overshadowed it without a doubt. Inhaling a shaky breath, her legs nearly gave out as she slowly walked to the window in a daze. “Pero...pero pague los doctores...” She tearily muttered, as if that was the reason behind it all.

Her head bowed as tears continued to fall from a blank stare, misery etched in every feature.

“Conozco Divinity...” Enrique softly answered, voice wavering. His heart broke for his only sister, she hadn’t even been able to say goodbye. She hadn’t SEEN her mother in over a month. “Y los docotores TIENE el dinero, pero...hay nada que puden HACER.” He said, forlorn in his voice. “Fue su TIEMPO.”

Her throat convulsed as she tried to keep the ability to speak. Her chin wobbled a little. “Por lo MENOS...por lo menos ella no tiene sufrir mas...” She added meekly.

Leaning heavily on her hands, they seemed to press into the windowsill. Her entire weight seemed held up with only her hands, her legs utterly useless. It was a miracle she hadn’t fallen already.

Her mouth opened in a silent cry, screaming her despair to the deaf. Squeezing her eyes shut didn’t keep the tears from falling and soaking the sill with her misery. “Gracias...gracias por llamando...Enrique.” She shakily thanked. “Necesité...conocer...”

“Y no quise decirte...por lo menos, no mientras fue a trabajo. Pero papa diji que necesitó conocer.”

“Dice padre...gracias...” She whispered tearily. “Llamaré tarde para detalle sobre el funeral.”

Slowly, her finger reached up and tapped the delicate button again, terminating the painful call. She knew it was going to happen eventually, but she wished it weren’t so. The painful truth, despite all she tried to help avoid, happened. Inhaling another shaky breath in the silence, a small cry of defeat sounded, almost too loudly.

His heart bled for the girl he saw. He watched it all, only able to deter a few words she rapidly spoke. Funeral perked his ears, sending warning signals in his head.

Eyes shiny with tears he could almost shed himself, he silently pushed his chair back, standing slowly. “Divinity?” He nearly whispered.

She exhaled a quiet, shaky breath and sniffled. He could sense her heart breaking, but unless she spoke in English, he couldn’t help her in any way. And he knew she wasn’t strong enough to repeat what happened though. She looked ready to fall apart.

His entire soul screamed to go comfort her as he watched her shoulders slowly shake. Silently, he walked around his desk, slowly walking to her, hoping not to startle her.

Stopping a few foot from her, his lips pressed together. He had no clue what he was getting himself into. “Divinity?” He asked even softer.

Slowly turning, he met her eyes and was almost bowled over by the pain that shone from her tears. Her entire face was pure anguish and he was almost suffocated by it.

“¿POR QUÉ Quatre?” She whispered in misery. She quickly turned to him and gripped his arms, shaking them slightly.

He looked at her sadly as she gave off a beseeching look. Tears continued to fall down her face.

“¡No es JUSTO! ¡No pude decir adios!” Her head bowed quickly, as if an invisible yoke was suddenly deposited around her neck. “No dije adios...” She whispered.

Her legs finally gave out, all her strength gone. She quickly fell and his arms hurriedly moved under her arms, but her dead weight was more than he could hold in the awkward forward position he was in.

The two slumped to the floor, resting on their knees. If she was able, she would’ve crawled into a fetal position and hugged her knees as tightly to her chest as she could. But it wouldn’t kill the pounding ache in her heart. Nothing would ever be the same again. Her world had changed.

Wishing you were here with me...

The damn finally broke. Inhaling shaky breath led to the exhaling of a shaky cry that continued to soft sobbing. He awkwardly enveloped her small, frail form, trying to send comfort to her broken heart.

She didn’t resist him and leaned in to his embrace, weaving her arms tightly around his torso. Shoulders shaking with more strength than before, she kept mumbling in Spanish against his chest. “¡No es JUSTO! ¡NO es JUSTO! ¡Aye...mama! ¿¡POR QUÉ!?”

That broke to louder sobbing, the sound carrying through the fabric of his shirt. Tears soaked his shirt in a torrential downpour, sending her grief to him.

Even though he didn’t know what was going on, he tried his best to help her. One hand went to the top of her hair, slowly running over the top of it.

Slowly rocking the two in the silence, his teary eyes looked around the office, the rest of his face tinged with sadness.

Gradually looking at her small form, he wondered what he was going to do now. There was no WAY she was going to be able to work, not after what she was going through. And there was no way he was going to PUT her back to work, not after knowing what little he witnessed.

~*~*~

Twenty minutes later, all his appointments and calls on hold, he trudged back into his office. He’d taken the earpiece off her ear and assigned one of the other secretaries to all of Divinity’s duties for the rest of the day.

Shutting his door silently, he clicked the lock on it as quietly as he could. He wasn’t going to let anyone in the room and bother them.

Leaning against the door heavily, sorrowful eyes looked across the room at the living room furniture. Divinity was sprawled out on her side, facing him as she fitfully slept on. She cried herself to near exhaustion in only a few minutes, nearly falling asleep soon after. Knowing she was unable to walk on her own, he had picked her up in his arms and carried her to the couch. He knew she couldn’t have weighed much by her thin stature, but she hardly weighed anything in his arms.

Slowly walking to the armchair, he plopped down as quietly as he could, feeling older than his fifteen years. Propping both elbows on his knees, he sighed and rested his face in both hands. Harshly rubbing his face, he felt the stress he suffered for his friend.

Overlapping his hands, his chin heavily rested over them as he stared at the enigma. Her slow, even breathing gave away the deep sleep, but the suffering was still in the crease in her brow, in the raised eyebrows.

His head shook slowly, pressing his lips together tightly. ‘What happened to her?’ He wondered. He was determined to ask her when she woke up, but when was a mystery.

A new question popped into his head, nearly bowling him over. ‘I should take her home with me.’

Leaning back in his chair, wide eyes blinked quickly as he tried to rationalize that thought, never leaving the peaceful sleeper in front of him. ‘Well...she shouldn’t be ALONE right now...that’s apparent... She’s never let me give her a ride home so I don’t know where she lives and she’s in no condition to WALK home...’

The more he rationalized, the better the idea sounded. ‘But I’m only doing this because I’m worried about her.’ Standing, he felt the indescribable urge to pace.

Clasping both hands nervously behind him, blue eyes stared at the floor, occasionally straying to the beauty nearby. ‘It’s only natural that I’m worried about her. I’m her boss and she’s been displaying some troublesome behavior over whatever is plaguing her. And I’m also her friend.’ His step paused, eyes locking on her face. ‘I hope.’

The pacing resumed as he continued to think out his jumbled intentions. ‘I’m only trying to help after all. I don’t want her walking home; she could get hit by a car somehow. This’s the safest way.’

Coming to a decision, and hoping it was a correct one, he went to his desk, thinking of everything he’d need to get worked out. Grabbing the papers for the few meetings he was supposed to have today, he went to his door and left. He intended on having Divinity retype a few and make some copies for the chairmen, but she wasn’t able to talk in anything but her own language.

Dropping the papers off with a short, vague explanation, he went to the front desk to make his calls. He dialed the few businesses and apologized for the delay in the meeting, thinking up a quick excuse that wouldn’t render him or his employees incompetent. It wasn’t easy to word either. Lastly, he called Jenny.

She didn’t ask many questions about possibly coming in tomorrow. “Is she okay?”

His head bowed with closed eyes. “I don’t know.” He muttered, not knowing how much she would want him to tell to others. “She had a...BAD phone call from someone in her homeland. I’m not expecting her to work if she doesn’t feel up to it.” There, THAT was vague enough.

Jenny’s hands flew to cover a gasp, eyes widening. “Oh dear God, it’s not her MOTHER, IS IT?” She asked in deep concern.

His head shot up, brow furrowing as he looked at her concern stare. “How do YOU know?” He asked mildly suspicious.

She sighed and shook her head sadly. “Almost EVERYONE at the company knows about Diva’s mother. That’s why they ALLOW her to work such long hours...and take on such a heavy workload. If she doesn’t have anything to do after office hours, they’ll have her leave. But if she takes on extra, it gives her an excuse to stay as late as she can.” A half smile popped up. “I was kind of angry for not being able to work at all or only sporadically, but when she finally broke down and told me what was going on at home...I more than HAPPILY agreed to take the slack when she’s not around.”

His brow rose. Questions popped into his head. “What’s going on at home?” He asked, hoping she would tell him. “I tried asking her, but all she did was ramble in Spanish to me.”

The concern in her face deepened. “Oh poor thing, she must be REALLY upset.” Jenny’s lips pursed.

“What. Happened.” He nearly ordered. It would do no good to be cross with her, but he was getting annoyed by apparently being the only one without important information.

Her lips pursed momentarily. “Well...her mother is sick.” She slowly started. “I mean SICK. As in big time hospital bills.” She bit her lower lip briefly. “Her family can’t afford the bills due to what THEY’RE struggling with at home, and she offered to find a job with enough pay to afford everything.”

His eyes widened in astonishment. She offered to move away from Earth, all the way out to L-4, AWAY from her mother, just to work HERE?

“She works so much to send what she could to pay the doctors so they could continue treating her mother, to try and save her.” Her eyes downcast to the table. “I guess it didn’t work.” She whispered.

He was utterly floored. She was a more compassionate person than he previously thought. His respect rapidly rose for her methods, as well as honorable intentions.

A pent up breath exhaled loudly, one hand scrubbing his face with an unrevealed problem. “So what will she do NOW?” He asked, mentally dreading the answer.

Jenny looked into his worried eyes. A serious look appeared. “Now that there’s no need to work out here, she’ll leave...” She voiced out loud.

Shock slowly appeared. In such a short amount of time, Divinity wormed her way through Jenny’s, and most of the other employees’, hearts. It would be hard to see her go; everyone was like a family there. They all tried to be her surrogate family while she was away from home, try to be supportive of her situation.

“Maybe she won’t.” He thoughtfully denied. Her quizzical gaze demanded answers. “Think about it. If her mother is gone, there’s going to be a funeral. Funerals are EXPENSIVE. She might be gone for a while, but she’d need to keep working here to AFFORD it all.” He explained.

He immediately knew how selfish that explanation was and felt low. It was as if he was keeping her around for petty, self-centered reasons.

His mind did a double take. ‘But you were just arguing a little while ago about taking her home being the right thing to DO.’ A small flush appeared when he realized he was right. He DID want her around, to keep her spirit around him. She was a beautiful person, inside and out. This whole situation just further deepened his beliefs.

He ended the call shortly after, reminding her to call in tomorrow to see if she was to work. Leaving the desk with a jumbled mind, he slowly ambled back to his room, one finger thoughtfully rubbing his chin. Trying to sort out what he was thinking and going through was a hard task at best. He was confused without a doubt.

Stopping outside his door, two fingers went around the bridge of his nose. ‘This is going to give me a headache.’ He thought, squeezing his eyes shut briefly.

Quietly entering again, he locked the door behind him to keep everyone else out. She needed rest and he wouldn’t have anyone waking her.

Going to the armchair again, he resumed his previous position, exhaling a sigh. Rubbing a finger over his lips with one finger, he stared at her beauty, dulled from the downcast emotions she faced even in sleep. But she still looked like an angel even through it all.

Leaning back in the chair again, he heavily sunk down in it. Leaning back against the back of the chair, his eyes stared at the tall ceiling blankly. Time dragged before he moved his head up again, one hand roughly scrubbing across his features.

‘What are you doing to me?’ He silently asked, staring at her closed eyes. Still asleep, she never answered him, keeping him guessing at whatever feelings were going through him.