"You're not going to come over?" It was after school now, Ray and Lucy were walking together through the halls of Windian High, heading towards the auditorium. Lucy shook her head to Ray's question.

"I just need to be alone a bit and think, that's all. Maybe I'll head over later, alright?" Lucy smiled at Ray as she opened the doors to the auditorium and almost ran straight into Frank. The startled three looked at each other for a moment.

"What are you..." Ray started to ask but Frank just shook his head with a smile.

"Sorry if I startled you two. I've got study hall sixth period so I come in here." Frank jabbed his thumb over his shoulder, motioning into the auditorium behind him. "You didn't know that?"

"I do now." Ray chuckled. "Anyway, ready to come over and help me with the pest control?"

"Yea." Frank nodded and shouldered his backpack. "We need to find Yuki really quick, she said she wanted to help. You coming?" The Persona User turned to Lucy who just shook her head.

"I'll see you both later though." Lucy offered the two guys a weak smile as she waved them out of the auditorium. The windian then turned and sighed, looking towards the stage. It used to be that whenever Lucy came here after school it had been to practice with the WINGS for any upcoming dances. Like the one we're going to be having in a few weeks... Her gaze slowly moved to where the drumset had been placed in the back of the stage and the windian felt a rush of emotion flood up through her, blinking rapidly to fight her tears she hurried towards the sound booth, opening the door quickly as she stepped inside, dropped her backpack on the ground, slammed the door shut and sat down quickly on the stool that had been placed by the sound controls. The windian then buried her face in her hands and sniffed quietly to herself, still fighting the tears that she didn't want to cry. Brandon had been the drum player in the WINGS band. Many times after school he and Lucy would go to the auditorium, and while she messed around with all the buttons and dials of the sound booth, he'd be setting up the drumset and practicing. Now, however, there was dead silence in the auditorium, save for Lucy in the sound booth. Brushing a few strands of hair from her face, the windian bit down on her lower lip and squinted her eyes closed.

I'm not going to cry... I can't cry... I don't want to cry... But she needed to cry. There, in the back of Lucy's mind, was the tiny little voice of her past self, Nina, telling her that she needed to cry. That she needed to stop hiding her emotions like she did. Ray had said it earlier, Lucy had a mask of coldness, and she needed to break it. That's just so much easier said then done... She had spent the past eleven years of her life hiding behind that cold mask. Behind that mask, no one could see how she was feeling. No one could tell if she was happy, sad, scared, or worried. She had spent eleven years perfecting that mask, getting the look in her eyes just right so that they carried an almost cold tone to them that kept people from asking, keeping her voice at just the right level so that no one could sense any of the emotion that was hidden away in it. Lucy was a master at hiding everything she ever felt, thought, or experienced. At least, up until now. It was just too much now. Brandon, the two weeks out of Windia, her being forced to recognize her past life as Nina. Everything that had been piled up on her within the past month was just too much, and the more she hid it behind her mask the more it ate away at her, leaving her as hollow and empty and cold as the mask she wore. Lucy knew that, and Ray knew that. And Ray wasn't about to let Lucy do that to herself. The dragon had been dedicating much of his efforts to peeling off that mask that Lucy constantly wore, and his efforts were slowly working. However, without him around to help her, Lucy was unable to fight against her habit if hiding everything behind her mask. So, now, in the sound booth, alone in the auditorium, that's what she was doing. Fighting back her tears, and hiding them behind her mask. I'm not going to cry... But she knew that she needed to.

It was then that a new sound startled the windian and she looked up through the windows the booth towards the stage. Apparently, during her time lost in thought, Lucy hadn't notice Jason quietly walk into the auditorium. And, apparently Jason, while he sat on the stage tuning his guitar, didn't notice Lucy in the sound booth. The raven-haired windian stood up and opened the doors to the sound booth, listening as a few notes began to drift through the air as Jason plucked away at his instrument. Lucy quietly walked over to the stage and watched him a moment as he continued to strum away, oblivious to his audience. She cleared her throat and he jumped, his hands slipping over the strings and causing a loud 'twang' noise as he turned to face Lucy, his eyes wide and startled.

"What the fuck are you doing here?"

"In all fairness," Lucy motioned towards the sound booth, "I was here before you were."

"Shit." Jason rolled his eyes. "Give a guy a warning, will you? Used to be I'd walk in here, see Brandon, and know that you're around. Now it's just you popping up out of nowhere." The red-haired windian went back to idly plucking at the strings of his guitar, not even noticing the change in Lucy's expression as he mentioned her brother's name.

"Jason." Lucy started up in a cold voice. "Is being a complete jerk just a natural talent to you or do you really have to try at it?"

Jason raised an eyebrow curiously as he turned to Lucy. "Alright, now you're starting to sound like Janet. What did I do?"

"You have this uncanny ability..." Lucy shook her head, keeping her eyes trained on Jason, "to say the worst thing possible and not even notice it, you know that?"

Jason just gave Lucy a look that said 'I'm not surprised' and shrugged. "Yea. I seem to notice that happens. Let me guess, I was talking about shit, said Brandon's name, and that was it, huh? Fucked it all up from there."

"You could say that." Lucy crossed her arms and turned, walking quickly towards the sound booth. Behind her she heard Jason slam out a quick chord or two and then called out her name.

"Hey, Lucy!" She turned to stare at him for a moment. Jason eyes were still trained on his guitar as he plucked out a few more notes randomly. "You still blame me for killing your brother?" Jason waited, but Lucy didn't answer. Still, without looking at her, he continued to talk. "I don't blame you. Infact, I agree really. Been thinking about him a lot... I could have done something back there, you know? You think about him much?"

"Jason..." Lucy managed out coldly, blinking back the tears that were once again pushing at her eyes. "I don't want to talk about it."

"Don't want to talk about it? What, you don't want to talk about your brother?" Jason shook his head, still plucking away at the strings. "Yea, like hell you don't. I bet he runs through your mind every second of the day, and now you say you don't even want to talk about him?"

"JASON!" Lucy's voice broke, and the coldness in it was washed away by the fury and hurt that now took control of her tone. "You are the last person on Torana that I ever want to talk to about my brother!" Jason finally stopped his guitar playing and turned to look at her with his tired eyes. The red-haired windian studied her for a moment.

"You going to cry?"

"What?" Lucy blinked in surprise, confused by his question.

"I said, are you going to cry?" Jason repeated his words in an almost mocking tone. "Have you fucking cried your eyes out over your brother yet?"

Lucy's gaze narrowed into a dangerous glare. "That has nothing at all to do with you, Jason!" Again she turned to storm back to the sound booth but Jason's voice made her pause.

"So you haven't huh? Wow... and you call me the heartless one? Your own brother..." Jason let out a whistle and shook his head, strumming at his guitar again. "You're own fucking brother and you won't even cry..." The windian heard a noise beside him and glanced up to see Lucy standing right next to him, a cold and hurt fire burning in her eyes as she held his gaze with her deadly glare.

"I have cried more tears in the mourning of my brother then I will ever cry for your and your misfortunes in a thousand life times..." she hissed out in a voice of venom as she spoke hatefully at the windian on the stage. "You killed my brother, and a part of me died that night out there in the cold with him... don't you ever mock me again about my brother's death, Jason Burnhart... or I swear..."

"You swear?" Jason raised his eyebrows curiously at Lucy. "You swear what? What are you going to do to me?" Jason watched Lucy for a moment but she made no reply. He shook his head, strummed a guitar string lightly and then turned back to her. "Well? Come on, Lucy? What the fuck are you going to do to me?"

"Are you just trying to piss me off even more, Jason?" Lucy blinked quickly as tears of hate and sorrow began to slip down her cheeks. "Are you honestly trying with everything you have to make me want to kill you?"

Jason stopped his idle strumming for a moment and turned to look at Lucy. "Are you honestly trying to hide from the world and from yourself everything that's bothering you?"

Lucy simply stared at him in amazement. "What are you talking about?"

The windian shrugged and turned his attention back to his guitar, leaning up against one of the closed stage curtains as he began to strum again. "Come on, Lucy, honestly now. How many times have you really cried about your brother? How many times have to stopped to mourn him whenever you get that overwhelming sense of loss. How many times have you come to me, threatening to beat the shit out of me because of what I did to Brandon and to you? And don't tell me you haven't been thinking about doing that atleast once or twice." Jason continued to strum a few notes, still not looking at Lucy as he spoke. "Then again, you like to keep that shit all bottled up inside of you, don't you? You know what happens when you keep something bottled up and you don't let it out..." Jason then turned his gaze over to where Lucy was still staring at him in wonder. "It pops." He snapped his fingers. "Just like that. It all snaps out, and then you've got shit everywhere to deal with when it would have been much easier to deal with it a long time ago before it all built up." He plucked out a few more notes, turning his attention back to his instrument. "Come on, Lucy, just let the shit out. Tell me you fucking hate my guts, tell me you wish it was me dead instead of your brother. Do whatever the fuck you want to, slap me for all I care."

"Jason..." Lucy shook her head, her voice now calmer as she stared at the windian in wonder. "I don't want to slap you..."

"Well then, what the fuck do you want to do?"

"I just want to be alone and think about Brandon for a while..."

Jason shrugged. "Sounds fair. Mind if I stay anyway and amuse myself?"

"Do whatever you want." Lucy muttered as she headed back towards the sound booth. "Just don't bother me." The raven-haired windian stepped into the booth and closed the door, sitting once more on the stool and dropping her head into her hand. She still couldn't believe it. Lucy had always been used to Jason being a total jerk, but this time was the first time that he had ever seemed to have an alterier motive with his actions. He wants me to cry... she thought to herself. He knows... he knows I've been holding it in, and he's doing everything he can to make me let go of it all and just let it flood out... She honestly wasn't sure if she hated Jason Burnhart or was thankful to him. It was then that once more the sound of a guitar strumming caught her ears, only this time it wasn't just idle strumming. Lucy flicked on the speakers of the sound booth so that she could hear the stage better and sat, listening as Jason began to play and sing quietly.

"What do you do when your best friend goes one day? Somebody takes their life away. Don't wanna wake up Monday morning. And now how are you supposed to deal with everything you've gotta do, when you can barely believe it's true? Don't wanna wake up Monday morning. And I don't think that I can go to school today, without you."

Lucy listened in silence to Jason's song as the windian continued to strum and sing quietly. He knows I'm listening to him... The thought struck her as the windian on stage began once more.

"And missing you is something that I never thought I'd have to do, you were always there I was there for you too. Don't wanna wake up Monday morning. And of all the evil souls that do survive, how could this world take such a beautiful life? Don't wanna wake up Monday morning. And I don't think that I could go to school today, without you.

"Something's coming over me I'll never be the same. And how could this same world that brought you in just come and take you away? And if there is a way that you can hear me when I pray... when I wake up Monday morning. And I don't think that I can go to school today, without you."

Jason continued to play and sing, but Lucy didn't hear him anymore. She still had the speakers on, and even though the sounds of the stage were able to filter into the sound booth, the sound from inside the booth was not returned out to the stage, and Jason had no way of hearing Lucy as she sobbed to herself from where she sat, her face in her hands. The windian had been holding back her tears for the day, and now, sitting alone in the sound booth in the auditorium where she had been just recently fighting them back, she was now able to just sit and cry as much as she wanted to as Jason sat out on the stage, calmly playing his guitar and singing to himself. I had to cry... Lucy thought to herself, I had to cry... and now I can...