Author's Notes: I'm sorry for not updating sooner. I've been so busy! I recently moved to Florida with my fiancé :) I've had to deal with a lot of drama from home. It was clogging my creative process. Now I have the time to sit and think so here's an update. I haven't given up on this story yet. So expect normal updates to continue. I made this chapter a bit longer so it will make up for my absence. Thanks for all of the reviews/story watches. It's greatly appreciated!

Disclaimer: I do not own Sailor Moon. We know this because it’s still off-air.

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Bruises and Chocolate
Chapter 5

His living space felt like a black hole. Mamoru Chiba no longer lived the life of a rock star and it was obvious. The place of his residence was frigid, empty, and tiny. It was nearly 1/4th of the penthouse he called home in Los Angeles. The studio-style apartment had everything in one room. The only things that were separate were the bathroom and closets. As he lay on his empty bed, his mind roamed with thoughts. Where did Motoki get off attacking him like that? Sure he was a complete asshole and probably deserved it, but he had never expected Motoki to be so violent. The self-destructive thoughts in his mind felt like today was a complete confirmation of everything he thought of himself. He was worthless. His life was only there for the purpose of making others miserable. So many times he fantasized about ending it, but even he was not man enough to end his own life. He dwelled in self-misery, living in the past nightmares he had seen. Mamoru’s heart was dark, cold, and unforgiving of himself.

As he played the events of the day back in his mind, he often found himself pausing on the face of that girl. Who was she? Her eyes seemed so familiar, but so dark at the same time. They were not dark like his but different. This girl seemed to be drowning in a lifetime worth of sorrows. She was very protective of Motoki, but extended out her hand to him as well. She could possibly have been Motoki’s girlfriend, but they did not seem to be romantically involved. Maybe he didn’t want them to be romantically involved. Mamoru sighed and mentally screamed at himself. He did not want Motoki to hate him. How was he going to change that when he hated himself?

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Unlike Mamoru’s apartment, the place where Usagi found herself that evening was warm. It was warm, smelled of pastries, and felt like a home. She sat at the table in the family room watching a strange idol performance. Her eyes were on the television but her mind was elsewhere. “Usagi, I’m glad you came over for dinner. I haven’t seen you since…in a while. I missed you.” Makoto, the tall brunette, entered the room with a tray of dumplings in her hand. She mentally kicked herself for almost mentioning the funeral. She had to be more careful with her words. Usagi was rarely sensitive, but now she was in an extremely frail state of mind. Nobody could understand how she felt and it didn’t seem like she was opening up anytime soon.

“Well I have to be honest; I wouldn’t have come if something strange didn’t happen today. I didn’t know who else to turn to you. You know Motoki the best.” Usagi stated simply, gently giving a faded smile at her friend. Makoto lifted an eyebrow at her petite friend as she sat across from her.

“What about Motoki? Is he in trouble?” Makoto asked before placing the dumplings on the table. Usagi shook her head in response.

“I don’t think he’s in trouble. He was in a fight today.” Usagi’s voice remained calm and quiet. Makoto nearly choked on her dumpling.

“In a fight? In a fight with who? Is he hurt? Usagi you’re going to have to give me something to work with here. What in the hell happened today?” Usagi sighed simply. Makoto did have a bit of a temper, so she had to be selective with her words.

“I went to have lunch with Motoki. Some guy walked into the restaurant and Motoki excused himself. I was sitting there when I heard commotion coming from outside. I ran out to see Motoki’s hands crushing the guy’s throat. Motoki did a number on him because his lip was bleeding. I tried to help him out, but he got on his bike and drove off. When I asked Motoki about it he said it was nothing so I left. It was obviously something. I have never seen Motoki angry in my life. The guy looked familiar but my brain drew a blank. He’s about the same height as Motoki, dark-hair, dark blue eyes. I couldn’t even catch a name from either of them. I just know this guy looked apologetic, like he was carrying the weight of the world. I’ve never seen anyone with that look in their eye. He looked like he had no one. I guess I felt for a millisecond that maybe somebody else understood what I was going through. Now I’m rambling.” Usagi began snacking on a dumpling to stop from talking. She had come to get help about Motoki, not to talk about the way she felt.

“I don’t know. That’s a tough one. I don’t think Motoki would ever hit someone without having a good reason. I know you feel differently, but that guy is probably bad news.” Usagi only sighed. Nobody was ever going to understand. The way she was felt was far from normal. She couldn’t continue to wake up every day and feel like dying. She had to push through this, and somehow she felt like one person could help her do that. The problem was shaking enough information out of someone to find out who this guy was.

“You’re probably right, Makoto. You’re probably right.” Usagi thanked her friend for the time and left. For the first time in a long time, Usagi felt motivated to do something. However, this could be the something that ruined her life.

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The classes at Juuban University seemed to be come longer and longer as the day drew on. Mamoru had no idea why even decided to attend today. As if he were not already in living hell, the only person he thought he had left on this earth basically wanted him dead. He was cursed. Why was he living to begin with? He took lives but continued maintain his own. He hated his life.

Rei and Minako escaped from Intermediate Shakespearean Drama and proceeded to hideout in the library. They definitely were not finishing classes for the day. Being the two intellectually challenged of their group of five, they were in need of some relaxation. “I can’t believe Professor Laurence made us write fourteen pages of notes. I thought British people were nice.” Minako complained as she and Rei sat at an empty table.

“They are nice. Professor Laurence is just a spawn of evil spirits. I do not like him at all. However, we have more important things to worry about right now than our falling GPAs. Did Makoto tell you what happened with Motoki at the restaurant yesterday?” Rei asked.

Feet away from them, the sound of Motoki’s name caught Mamoru’s ear. His eyes shot over to the blonde and raven-haired girl sitting a few tables away from him. Did everyone in Juuban know Motoki? Were there always that many blondes in Juuban?

“No, what happened? I think she called me last night, but I was too busy trying to catch Artemis. He got away from me again last night.” Minako said, blowing a blonde strand of hair out of her eye. Rei laughed.

“You’re such a cat lady. You’re never going to get married and live with Artemis until you’re dead.” Rei giggled.

“I am not! Rei don’t say that!” Minako protested standing up. Rei covered her mouth, noticing the string of attention Minako’s outburst had brought them.

“You dumbass, we’re in a library. Shut up.” She spat. Minako rolled her eyes and took her seat. “So anyway, back to Motoki who isn’t a cat lady. Makoto said that Usagi came over last night.” Minako gasped. “I know. Anyway, Usagi told her that Motoki was fighting some guy outside of the restaurant. Obviously our Motoki was the one who was giving the ass whooping. Apparently they don’t get along but Motoki wouldn’t give any details. Usagi said he was fine until he saw the guy. It was like he snapped our something. We all know Motoki isn’t like that. He wouldn’t just snap on somebody. He’s the nicest person I know. However, Makoto said Usagi seemed to be making excuses for the guy. I forgot what was said but Makoto is worried that Usagi is losing it.”

“That’s serious. Usagi hasn’t spoken to any of us since the accident. I don’t know what to say or how to make this better for her. I trust Usagi’s judgment though. She has the best judge of character with people. She was always that way.” Minako pointed out. Rei nodded in agreement.

Mamoru tapped his fingers at his laptop trying to process the conversation he had just endured. “Usagi.” He solemnly whispered her name. Why did that sound so familiar? He looked over at the two girls again. Rei? Minako? Their names sounded quite familiar as well. He was sure he had known these girls once upon a time, especially Usagi. He closed his eyes and tried to concentrate. Suddenly it felt like a ton of bricks hit him over the head. Usagi. It couldn’t be. She couldn’t be. He opened his laptop and quickly loaded Juuban University’s website. After logging into his member’s dashboard, he quickly found the student directory. After typing the name Usagi, he nearly choked on his oxygen. Usagi Tsukino’s profile was on his laptop. As if his life couldn’t get any more complicated, it did.