She had never thought she would fall in love, not through her in entire life, maybe it was because her heart was frozen through distrust and dishonesty, or maybe in her eyes, she was simply one of those people who did not fall love... ever. She watched though, watched her friends and her foes fall hard or fall softly, but it did not matter, they all loved. Some were not loved in return, others were. She however never did fall in love in her life. Her life was short, and taken away early and suddenly. A broken neck and glass shards were what killed her, the cause a car and its driver. Alcohol and anger behind that. Her death though changed nothing. Her beliefs remained the same, as she was given her wings and her scythe. An angel of death was what she was, destined to take the souls of the recently departed to their afterlife. And with those powers that let her take the souls into the next world, she was given many other powers, but one, to see red string.

For years, she reaped, taking the old the young, the sick and the healthy, the rich and the poor to the next world. She took friends and foes, lovers and haters, saints and sinners to their fates. She watched them go, but never went herself.

It wasn't until she had to reap someone from the neighbourhood of her youth, did she stop watching. It was a cold day, one of those days that was crisp and you could see clouds of mist come from your mouth as you breathed. She made no footsteps in the frost as she walked along the pavement to her destination. The sun had sunk early, as it does in winter, so that by five o clock the stars had already started twinkling in the dusky blue sky and the orange street lamps were the light that lit her way. None of the pedestrians noticed a strange girl walking past them, nor did they notice the occasional feather that fell to the pavement from her wings. Finally she saw the house, it was ordinary looking house, with a black front door and large windows. Now crunch of footsteps was heard as she walked down the gravel drive towards the front doors.

So maybe it came as a surprise to her, when someone opened the front door to greet her. A sad smile was on the face of the person who opened the door. He was beautiful in a way which is impossible to describe, his skin was as pale as the snow that was to fall later that night, and his hair the colour of a night with no moon. This time though, unlike with all the others she had seen before they had died, her eyes prickled with tears. Death you see, is never fair, because there is always someone who mourns. Someone who hurts and doesn't understand why it had to be then. Why not just a few minutes more, why not a good bye?

Those tears though gave her clarity, she saw the red string that he twisted between his fingers and how it was looped around his right arm and wrapped around his neck. She followed with stinging eyes, where it was twisted around her scythe and finally her eyes moved to her hand where it was tied in a bow around her little finger.

When she finally looked up, she met his eyes, which were accompanied with one of those smiles that you couldn't tell if they were happy or sad.

"Red string..." She murmured under her breath.

"I've been waiting." He said quietly, gesturing for her to come inside. He lead her into the house and into the living room where they sat down at opposite ends of the room, the red string pulled taut.

"I-I can't do-"

"You never noticed me...I was always watching, but you never glanced my way, but you were always watching them weren't you?" She nodded and he continued. "I always knew."

"Knew what?" She asked, feeling truly confused for the first time.

"The red string. Yumi and Aki, they're connected to. I've always been able to see red string. But that's the one thing you've never seen before." She sat in silence, not knowing what to do, or say... She couldn't kill her soul mate, could she? But it was her job...what would they do to her if she didn't. " it's unbreakable, you know. It wouldn't have believed how many times I tried to break it after i found out. In hopes you'd find someone else. But then you died. They were all crying at your funeral. They put your ashes into the river. Just like you wanted. Even when you died it didn't break though." He was looking at his feet as he said this, as she stared at him. She'd known him, he'd been in her year at school. In her class. But he was right. She had never noticed him. Never spoken to him, other than to say thank you for a book given out, for holding a door open. She'd been to caught up in her own misery.

"That's how I knew I'd see you again. when it was finally time." She looked at him, shaking her head.

"I can't kill you. I can't be that selfish. I don't want to hurt-" He interrupted her again.

"It's already to late." This was when she finally noticed, his other hand, the sleeve was stained cherry red and he smiled at it slightly. She rushed over to stop the bleeding, but as she went to press her hand against the wound, it went through it. He was still living...still mortal, while she...she was the immortal dead.

"It won't be long now." He said quieter than before, his eyes starting to close.

"Why? Why suicide?" she cried, brushing away her tears as she did.

"It's less painful this way. No more tubes and needles." He said brushing her face, even though his fingertips still went through her.

"What do you mean?"

"My heart...it's weak. I only had a few months left anyway. They'll understand." He smiled again slowly.

"But, they could make it better, a transplant or...or surgery?" She suggested desperate to convince him, it wasn't his time.

"But I wouldn't be happy." He whispered, slumping down further into the chair.

" You would, you have so many people who love you, your friends, your family." Her few memories of him were always of him being surrounded by people. Popular by nature.

"But I wouldn't have you..." And with that he said no more. It wasn't for several more minutes did she see him again. She hugged him closely and picked up her discarded Scythe. Still though tears ran from her eyes, how could she tell him. Tell him he still couldn't. Drawing her scythe into the air and tracing a pattern in the air, she looked only at the ground. Not being able to face him.

"Please, they'll understand . Stop crying." He said finally being able to brush her tears off her cheeks.

"But you don't. It was never my time to die then. I'm condemned to this, until it is." her eyes met his, and she saw his pain. A burst of light distracted them and she sighed.

"It's time to go. I- I'm sorry."

"No...don't be. I love you." He said before kissing her and then turning and walking into the light.

"...I know." She said dropping to her knees and at last waiting for fate.