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servantofmischief · 6 years ago

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Christmas

I am so sorry! I promised I would have it up sometime during last week, but I lost track of time and had a lot to do, but here you go, Fluff-Anon!

When Uta had proclaimed that he’d go on an art trip for a whole year, his friends had supported him. They knew that this was something really important to him, and now that there was a somewhat steady peace between ghouls and humans, he had the chance at fulfilling this dream.

Itori will readily admit that she felt a bit bummed after he had been gone for a while, when she realized she had to celebrate her birthday without him. To his credit, he did make a phonecall to congratulate her and at the moment it had seemed enough. Then, once they had ended the call and she had been left alone in her bar, she had felt lonelier than ever.

She doesn’t feel any better now, when it is Christmas Eve and her bar is nearly empty because most people have someone to celebrate with. And she does not, because her partner in crime is halfway across the world. She keeps up the act of cheery barmaid for as long as she can, consoling herself with the fact that she is going to close the bar early tonight. No one is going to come and drink until the wee hours in the morning tonight. It is hard to keep the act up though, until it is near closing time.

And Renji enters the establishment.

“Ren-chan!” She jumps at the chance for a distraction from her depressing thoughts and feels a little less lonely when he sits down in front of her. Once everyone is gone, and the door is locked, she offers him a choice between wine and coffee. He grunts, and the answer is obvious. He can’t hold his liquor for shit, of course he wants coffee. She pouts, calls him a party pooper, but lulls the coffee machine to life.

“What brings you here, Ren-chan? Aren’t you going to celebrate with Touka-chan, Kanekicchi and Ichi-chan?”

“No one should be alone on Christmas.” Renji says, thanking her as she sets a cup of coffee in front of him. She fills herself a glass of wine, because even if Renji is here right now, she needs something stronger than coffee.

“Oh, were you thinking of me? How sweet of you, Ren-chan!” She gush, but he gives her that look that tells her he knows she is putting up a front. And she’s tired of faking smiles tonight anyway.

“Am I so transparent now?” She asks, smile falling off her face.

“Hn.” She takes a sip from her glass, mulling.

“You’re also invited over. Touka thought you might be lonely tonight.” Renji informs her and the redhead huffs.

“Contrary to what everyone else believes, I do have other friends than you and U-chan.”

“Are these friends real?” She glares at him, actually upset by his comment because no, they are not.

“Be quiet!” But he doesn’t keep quiet, surprisingly.

“Are you okay?” To have Yomo Renji, of all people, notice how she’s not her usually cheerful self, is kind of sad, but she explains to him how it feels kind of weird, and lonely, that for the first time for as long as she can remember, she will not be celebrating Christmas with Uta. Itori never once celebrated any birthday or holiday before she met the mask maker, so everything feels wrong, but she had honestly been excited on his behalf when he told her he had found the chance to go on this trip. A trip that would let him experience all kinds of art. Even though she knew he would be gone for quite some time, she hadn’t thought it would feel this bad.

“But he was so excited, it was almost like when we were kids again. He’s been wanting to go on this kind of trip since he figured out he was good at art, that he loved doing it.”

“For what it is worth,” Renji says as he stares into his coffee, “I think that you supporting him meant a lot to him.”

“I’ve always supported him.” Itori says quietly, grip tightening on her glass. “From when we were kids, I’ve always had his back. Hey, Ren-chan?” The male turns his head to look at her, and his eyes widen at the sight that meets him.

“Am I being stupid?” She asks, tears falling from her eyes. She doesn’t even bother attempting at stopping the waterfall. She’s kept this bottled up inside for so long, she’s wanted someone to talk to, but she’s had no one she felt like she could confide in. When humans and ghouls considered each other enemies, when the Clowns had been active, she had distracted herself with orchestrating the tragedies that took place, but now that they live in peace with humans, there are no more fights to create and watch over.

“Uh…” Renji doesn’t know what to say and that makes Itori laugh as she cries.

“I am stupid, aren’t I? I’m stupid for loving him! He’s going to find someone on this trip who is an artist like him, and he’s going to stay with them in whatever-country! Even worse, he might bring them home!” As he embraces his friend and tries to calm her down, Renji also sends a text-message to Touka to tell her he might be late.

Uta himself is feeling a bit lonely as well. There is a museum that is open today, but considering what day it is, it will probably close early. He’s still in bed in his hotel, it’s still early, but in Tokyo it is probably late by now. It is still better to call now though, than in the evening because he is sure no one will answer him then. He takes a shower and dresses himself, before heading out. The people outside are running around, carrying bags and boxes and nearly yelling into their phones. They are stressed, because Christmas is upon them and they must finish the last preparations before they can celebrate and Uta thinks about what his friends back home is doing right now. Back home, Renji is probably with the Kaneki household, Uta muses. Nico is probably scouring the streets for the one, the Nishikis are probably doing some kind of form of experimentations, Naki and Miza are having their hands full with their new family, most likely, and Itori…

Itori is most likely alone in her bar.

Uta misses her. A lot. This trip is fun, but it’s lonely too. He never expected to feel like this… the trip is fun, he just shouldn’t have gone all alone. And the coffee is awful. No one can compare to :Re, but it’s all he’ll get until he returns. He enters a café, asks for a cup of coffee, and pops in his earphones as he takes a seat by a table. He dials Itori’s number, hoping she’s got some time for a video-call and when she doesn’t pick up immediately he thinks that she’s either perhaps busy or asleep. He’s about to give up when she does answer. Her hair is covering half of her face and her eyes blink sleep from them.

“Oh my, did I wake you?”

“U-chan? What time is it?” Itori squints at her phone.

“Well, it’s almost noon here.” He quips.

“Where are you now? It’s two in the morning here.” She yawns.

“I’m in the states.” She brightens, eyes twinkling as he sleepiness is soon forgotten.

“How is it there? Are the Christmas decorations just as over-exaggerated as they are in the movies?” He laughs at her excitement and nods.

“Almost. They take it very seriously.”

“Ara, U-chan! Bring me a souvenir!”

“Do you have a gift for too, then?” She rolls her eyes and reaches out to beside the bed, before appearing on screen again, holding a small package.

“I have your Christmas gift right here, not that you’re here to open it in time.”

“Yeah, well-“ Uta is interrupted when a waitress sits down his coffee on the table as she cheerfully tells him to enjoy his beverage.

“Cheery girl.” Itori’s voice has lost some of it’s cheer and Uta blinks. She’s slid properly beneath the covers again, and she’s pouting.

“Hm, yes.” Apparently that is not the answer the redheaded ghoul wants to hear, as her eyes darken. “But as for my gift for you, what do you want?” Changing the topic seem to work. He sits for a long time with her as she lists all the things she’d like and Uta realizes he’ll have a hard time choosing from her list. His cup is almost empty by the time she’s out of things she wants him to bring home to her.

“Hm, that’s a lot.” He says, taking on a thoughtful expression. “How about you come with me next time?” There’s a pause as Itori tilts her head, watching him.

“Will there be a second trip?” She doesn’t sound all that enthusiastic about the prospect, and Uta himself misses his friends and his shop.

“Only if you come with.” He says. He misses Itori, their nights in the bar, the easy conversations which seem a bit difficult to have over the phone. He misses being able to just head over and visit whenever he wants. Itori thinks back to what she had told Renji earlier, how she has admitted to him the feelings she holds for the mask maker, her inner conflict over what to do, wondering if there even is something for her to do. She had been so surprised when the stoic ghoul had actually embraced her. Renji is usually so awkward when it comes to comforting others and Itori’s never sought comfort from anyone.

“Do what you must.” He had told her. “Don’t worry about what’ll happen, do what you have to do to feel better. No matter what, I’ll be here to listen.” And then, when he left, she had gone to bed with a newfound courage. She had believed she had a few months left until she could say anything, to have some time to think through her words.

“If it’s you and me, I guess I could tag along.” She mumbles, hiding her pink cheeks behind her pillows.

“Good.” He smiles. “You weren’t alone today, were you?” He asks and she shakes her head.

“Ren-chan came by.”

“Oh? Did you celebrate together?” He can’t exactly say that he’s unhappy that Renji came by, but there’s a dark emotion brewing in the back of his mind at the thought of the two of them alone.

“No, we just talked for a bit.” Her cheeks darken and she casts her eyes down, avoiding eye-contact, and that dark emotion grows. It’s jealousy, he gathers, though he tries to reason with himself that he’s the one who left on this trip, and that he never once told Renji how he feels about the redhead. If Renji holds the same feelings, then Uta left the playing field completely open by leaving on this trip.

“How nice.” Uta hears how forced he’s own voice sounds. Itori must have picked up on it too, because she looks up at him, eyes wide in confusion. That’s what alerts him to the redness of her eyes, and he comes to the startling realization that Itori has cried. He can’t remember the last time she did that.

“Itori-san, what’s wrong?”

“Wrong?”

“You’ve been crying?” Her eyes widen some more and she is suddenly in a hurry to end the call.

“Nothing’s wrong! Hurry up and finish your trip and come home!” She says and the screen goes black. He blinks at the screen, before he gets up from his chair and dials a new number.

“It’s three in the morning-“

“Tough luck.” Uta growls. He’s feeling a bit angry now, and he’d rather not cause a scene as he pays for his coffee. Just because Japan promotes peace, it doesn’t mean the rest of the world does.

“I’m about to go back to my hotel. Stay awake, Raven, I need to have a chat with you.”

“It can’t wait four hours?”

“No.” There’s a steely undertone to his voice which Renji haven’t heard since they were teenagers, so he wisely keeps quiet until Uta reaches his hotel room. He uses that tie to wake up properly so he can talk properly to his friend, and perhaps make some sense out of whatever it is that made the mask maker angry.

“I heard you stopped by Itori-san’s place earlier.” Uta says the moment he shuts the door behind himself. Renji blinks.

“Yes, to wish her a merry Christmas.”

“Then why has she been crying? What did you do, Renji-kun?” The silver-haired ghoul frowns on the other end before sighing.

“We were just talking. She had an issue, and instead of bottling it up, she let it all out and told me about it.” Uta is the one who frowns this time.

“What issue?” He hasn’t heard anything about a problem Itori might have.

“It’s not exactly something I’m comfortable with telling you. Ask her yourself when you get back.” Renji tells him, running a hand through his hair. “It’s personal, so ask her about it when you return. I assume she’ll have everything sorted out by then.”

“Renji-“

“No. I’m tired, this has nothing to do with me, enjoy your trip, call me when it’s actually appropriate to do so, like after eight in the morning.” Renji ends the call and leaves Uta pouting. True, he did call at an ungodly hour, but they could both have entertained him a bit longer. He’s curious about Itori’s alleged problem though.

Three days later, as Itori moves is cleaning up behind her bar, the door opens. She is about to tell whoever it is that has entered that she has closed, but nearly drops the bottle in her hands when she sees Uta enter.

“U-chan?” She nearly shrieks.

“Yo.”

“Wha- Aren’t you in the states?” She’s more than just a little bewildered. This explains why there had been no phone calls after Christmas, but still, what is he doing here?

“Renji-kun told me that something was bothering you and that I could help, so I came back.” Renji had never said he could help, but Uta had come home anyway, because he is worried. He is worried that Itori kept something bottled up, that she didn’t feel like she could confide in him, and that whatever is troubling her caused her to cry. Itori frowns. She thinks it is sweet of him, to cancel his trip and come home the moment he learns that she is troubled.

“Ren-chan said that? When?”

“I called him after we spoke on Christmas.” Uta answers and the redhead groans. Renji has for once not kept quiet. The one time she needed him to actually be quiet he blabbers like a gossip-loving teenager.

“What did he tell you?”

“That I should ask you yourself when I came back, because you would probably have it all sorted out by then. So, have you sorted it out?” Never mind the fact that Uta should still be gone for another four months, Itori thinks. Of course she hasn’t sorted it all out yet, with only a few days having gone by since she decided to actually spill the beans, so to speak.

“Obviously not. Lock the door.” She rolls her eyes and beckons him to come sit by the bar-counter. He does as told and waits for her to explain everything.

“It’s not a problem, not really. It’s just something that’s followed me for years.”

“Do I have to kill someone?”

“I doubt you will.”

“I can still kill, just point me in the right direction.”

“I don’t need anyone to die. If it was that simple, I’d do it myself.” She huffs and fills him a glass of blood-wine.

“Hm, true that. So, what’s bothering you?”

“Emotions.”

“Ah, they are a hassle, aren’t they?”

“Terribly so.” She agrees as she wipes the counter. Uta raises a brow, because usually when he visits and locks the door, she comes around and sits beside him. What is on her mind, he wonders.

“What’s on your mind, Itori-san?”

“I’m thinking about how to tell you this, without making everything complicated.” She tells him, ducking beneath the counter to rummage through the tiny shelves there for something, Uta doesn’t know what.

“You’re making this far too difficult, Itori-san. Just tell me and I’ll help you figure out a way to deal with it.”

“Absolutely sure of that?” She asks him, peering up from beneath the counter and he nods.

“Of course.”

“Okay then. Come here.” She stands up and motions for him to come closer as she smiles at him.

“You ready?” He nods. She leans even closer and whispers in his ear.

“I. Love. You. U-chan.” The expression on his face nearly makes her burst out laughing. His eyes are wide, his mouth hanging open, his expression a mix of disbelief and shock. She moves back to continue to clean up after her customers and lets Uta process what she’s told him. He doesn’t move for the longest time, but she doesn’t worry too much. It’s not like he showed a negative reaction to what she just told him. She does worry that she might have broken him a bit, but then again, that is an amusing thought too. She is about to turn off the lights and just leave him in the bar when he pulls out his phone and dials a number.

“Renji-kun, good evening. Also, what the fuck?!” This time she does laugh, and Uta spins in his seat, pointing at her.

“And you, you can’t laugh now!” His voice actually cracks and she curls in on herself, nearly falling over. They will have to talk about this later, have a good and long discussion where they figure out what to do, what they want to do, but right now she is more than amused with the display of the mask maker freaking out.

#Tokyo ghoul #anon-ask #my fic #Uta #Itori #Utori #UtaTori #fluff #art trip #because Uta probably wanted that

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ac-ars · 7 years ago

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Come on, bite him

as you all may know, i am a ridiculous person and it made me write this

i hope you enjoy it as much as i did

also, proofread? i dont know her

“Could you please explain me why I agreed on this?” Luna pouts a little, fixing the cape he gave her and wondering how ridiculous she has to look right now.

“We need to get my lame best friend out of the house for the party, of course. Have you even listened to me, little Luna?” Now it’s time for Gastón to pout at her. He sighs deeply and opens the door of the car to leave. “You promised me you would help and now you are being like this? Why are you being like this? Do you hate me?”

Luna growls slightly and he smiles. “Perfect. I knew you would be perfect for this role. Now take your pretty butt out of the car and follow me, because we can’t be late.”

She rolls her eyes, but takes the hand Perida offered a second ago. “I hope you won’t leave any green on me. Gastón, I don’t want to be Hulk just like you.”

He closes the door violently and stomps one of his feel. “I am not Hulk. I told you. I am playing…”

“Yeah, yeah,” she interrupts him, “you are playing Frankenstein. I have heard it already like a million times.”

“Apparently not enough.” He pouts more. The fake wrinkle on his forehead gets even deeper. On his green forehead it looks hilarious. “How did I tell you to call me?”

“Ugh, this is ridiculous. Why can’t you just get there and tell him to get dressed, Gastón-” he clears his throat with raised eyebrows. “-stein.” Luna adds, slapping her forehead.

When he called her two days ago, saying that Matteo didn’t want to go to the halloween costume party Luna wasn’t sure why it’s so important to go there. Besides, she had already asked him before and he had always told her that he would be studying, so she gave up. But clearly, Gastón(stein) won’t give up on his second half, on the another star in their binary, on the strawberry to his chocolate and whatever. He won’t give up, no matter what Matteo said he would be doing.

Perida immediately told her what he was gonna do and at first the idea seemed fun, until Luna thought about it more than three seconds. He planned to get in his costume, come to Benson mansion to give Luna makeover of her lifetime and use her as bargaining chip. That’s how she ended up being a vampire tonight. He still believes it’s gonna work, he is sure and Luna doesn’t wanna to take it away from him. After all no one has ever done as great make up as Gastón did plus the red lipstick he chose is perfect and he hasn’t told her what shade it was, probably to keep her with the plan.

“Okay, stop here now.” He rests his hands on her shoulders and she almost shivers. “We need to figure out what now.” “What?” She whispers-yells to him and jumps in the place irritated. “You don’t know what to do? You said you had everything figured!”

Gastón sighs again and messes his hair a little, making it look a little more believable. His suit isn’t really helping, but Luna likes this version of Frankenstein the most of them all. “Because I do, little Luna, but not yet in what order. First of all!” He jumps, excited as hell and searches for something in his backpack. After long two minutes he pulls out of it small black box and Valente rolls her eyes again, not sure if he could’ve done it more dramatically.

“You need to have this. I kept it for the last moment.”

She actually gets excited, hoping it will be some sparkly jewelry or something, but when she opens it she finds only fake vampire fangs. “What the hell, Gastón?”

He looks at her offended, but she can’t care about his silly nickname for tonight. “Put them into your mouth, it feels even funny.” Luna stares at him with wide eyes and he starts shaking his head. “I haven’t tried those, you silly! You are lucky that I love you, because if it were someone else I would. By the way, really keep them. It can help with your real teeth when Ambar decides to punch you.”

She nods quickly, hiding the box to her purse and Gastón giggles so much at her. “What?” she asks. “Nothing, you are just… just… you are so pale, Matteo will think that you are real vampire.” He manages to mumble through his laugh and she wants to kick him. “Ambar won’t punch you. She will probably try to be some hot witch, charming everyone’s wands, if you know what I mean.”

Luna blinks at him, not believing and he shakes his head at her. “Anyway,” she hums a little, “do you know what to do if Matteo doesn’t want to go with us?”

“Of course. This I prepared for. I have pizza flavored Bake Rolls. Who would tell them no? Plus I made sure to not take garlic. You look hot, please smile and conquer the world with me, little moon.”

She nods softly and takes the hand he offered her, leading her towards Matteo’s house. This is gonna be long night.

It’s Gastón who knocks to the door and woman, whom he calls María, looks at them surprised and, saying nothing, invites them inside. Luna’s short, black dress is kinda distracting her since the taffeta of the skirt looks super extra, but she guesses that’s how vampires dress. He stole all silver rings from Ambar and putting it on Valente’s fingers like stupid, saying that if Simón turns out to play a werewolf puppy, he would at least stay away. Luna was truly offended at this comment, but Gastón was just grinning and giggling from time to time saying that this is gonna be fun.

Her heels are making quiet sound, which sounds loud as fuck in the hall of this weird mansion. It still looks warmer than Benson one, and bless the stars for that. She stays too long watching around, because between one blink and the other, Gastón is turned away from her and smiling towards the left.

“Hello Mrs and Mr Balsano. It’s very nice evening, isn’t it?” He grins and pokes Luna who just waves at them.

“Gastón, it’s… really nice to see you now… like this.” Matteo’s mom tries to smile, hiding her surprise.”

Luna clears her throat. “It’s Gastonstein, actually. His stage name or whatever is it.”

Perida looks at her like freshly adopted puppy and she is giving him his own new toy, but that doesn’t really last long. “And who are you? I believe that you are a friend too.” The guy Luna found creepy at first asks, with actually warm voice and she guesses that this way of meeting Matteo’s parents she has never expected.

“Ah, this is Luna.” Gastón shrugs.

“Luna?” Mrs Balsano asks.

“Yes, Luna. You know, the one Matteo kissed on one competition; the one he cried after when you moved to Italy for vacation; the one he dramatically gave up on when you wanted to send him to Oxford…”

“Gastón enough.” All three of them says and Perida looks almost sad, so Luna softly pats his back. She sighs softly, smiling and waving again. “We came here to take Matteo for the party.” She doesn’t get to say anything more, because Gastón speaks again.

“We are here to make a vampire out of your son if you don’t mind.”

“And how are you going to do that?” Matteo’s dad asks, visibly amused and Gastón doesn’t change his serious face even for a second. “Luna is going to bite him, of course. She’s a real vampire after all.”

She slaps her forehead, not sure if those people will ever want over their place, they will probably think she’s crazy. Before more damage is done she just pokes Gastón. “We are in hurry. Come on.”

He nods and takes her hand, looking at Matteo’s parents. “Don’t worry. We won’t make Edward Lame Cullen out of him.”

“Knock, knock!” Gastón yells and opens the door to Matteo’s bedroom without any knocking.

“What the fuck, bro, why the hell are you Frankenstein?” Balsano asks loudly and, from what Luna can hear, because she can’t see, something falls to the ground.

“Ha! See?” Perida turns to the door to see Luna. “He knew it! He loves me more than you.”

“What are you talking to, Gastón?”

“To a vampire.” He answers and Luna snorts. This is too much for her nerves.

“What vampire?” Matteo sighs and she can imagine his face already while Gastón pouts again. He probably took it from her. “Listen, bro. I know you said no, so it’s time for me to take the things in my own hands. We are gonna change you into a vampire.”

“We?” The owner of this room asks and Luna wants to leave, she will stumble on those heels and break her leg or die. Gastón rubbed off on her as well definitely. “Who we?”

“Me and my little vampire here, of course. Come here.” He throws his arm around her shoulders and pulls her inside. Matteo seems to be almost pale when he notices her and she wants to throw up despite not drinking any alcohol yet.

“Luna…” The Italian starts slowly. “You are a vampire?” She sighs and nods, moving her skirt a little and the red cape, and noticing how his eyes stop on her red lips. Luna isn’t sure if she should bless or kick Gastón for that, because the part that isn’t anxious, really likes that.

“She is and you will be vampire too!”

“Why would I?” Matteo leans back on his chair and laces his fingers, watching them intently.

“Because some broom-headed bass player sold me info that Simón is going to be a werewolf and you obvious should be vampire. They are natural opponents or some shit. That’s very dramatic.”

Balsano shakes his head. “I’d say that it’s very Twilight-like. I won’t sparkle.”

“Ew no, Twilight, no. It will be more Vampire Diaries-like.”

Luna jumps into, leaning against the desk and turns to Gastón. “Which brother would Matteo be?”

“Which one you like better?” They both ask at the same time and she chokes. This is getting very interesting with every passing second. She lets them wait for a moment, not really wondering about that.

“He can be Stefan. He looks more like him.” Leaves her mouth and Gastón mumbles small: “and is pure softie like Stefan.” Luna frowns and pokes him on the ribs. “Leave him alone, he’s better than Damon.”

Matteo’s friend raises his hands, giving up. “Whatever you want, it’s your vampire, not mine.” Balsano clears his throat. “I would like to ask now… Just by the way, completely by curiosity. What did you offer Nico for the information?”

Gastón giggles. “I told him that I would pay for his new haircut at my hairdresser.” Luna snorts and he continues. “I also have more informations.”

“How?” She asks and he winks at her. “Ambar is a witch.”

“Well, we’ve known that for months already.” Matteo shrugs and Gastón highfives him. “I meant her costume. I lowkey seduced her goth blonde friend. If I tried with the Benicio Italian guy I’m not sure I would be able to resist so the blondie was it. Anyway, we need to make a vampire out of you here, like you see Luna ended up being perfect vampire to help me with that.”

“And how are you two going to do that?” Matteo asks and his best friend just smirks, clapping his hands. “She will bite you, how else?”

Luna shivered, because it sounds even dumber right now, when Matteo is watching her with something weird in the eyes until Gastón pushes his arm slightly. “I was joking. I mean, I know you would enjoy that, but this time we need to do it normally.”

He starts taking all stuff out of his backpack like makeup and even the costume and the pizza Bake Rolls at the end, leaving them on Matteo’s desk. Said Matteo takes them immediately. “How did you know, bro?”

“I always know what you want, we are soulmates of course. Now, Luna, how do you think, do we need to give him some lipstick or you will share yours with him? Oh, and Matteo, if you are nice tonight maybe she will bite you eventually.”

#slhalloweenparty #soy luna #lutteo #gastteo #gaston perida #luna valente #matteo balsano #why am i like this #my writing

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dotshiiki · 7 years ago

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CoL, chpt 18

XVIII: PERCY

The Jackson-Blofis apartment wasn't spacious to begin with. Now, with nearly twenty people crowded into the living room, it seemed five times more cramped than usual.

None of the friends Percy had invited over for Christmas seemed to mind, though.

His mom and stepdad had pushed all the furniture to the walls so that their guests could sprawl on the floor, passing cookies, chips, and seven-layer bean dip around.

They were all here��Percy's closest friends, the ones who had voluntarily trudged through Tartarus with him, or travelled cross-country to get them out of the pit. Others who hadn't been directly involved, but were part of his weird extended family all the same.

On the couch, Jason and Frank were deep in conversation with Paul, looking for all the world like a triad of high school teachers. Piper, Calypso, and Rachel sat in a cross-legged circle around the two-foot plastic tree they were decorating. Hazel, Tyson, and Ella played patty-cake with Percy's half-sister Joy. Thalia, Reyna, and Annabeth were having a discussion (Percy couldn't hear what the topic was, but he caught his name occasionally). Grover and Nico were locked in a debate on—of all things—reincarnation versus rebirth.

Percy himself was competing with Leo and Will to see who could build the tallest tower out of tortilla chips. He was losing at the moment—his stacks kept falling apart and he'd already started over from scratch several times.

Annabeth detached herself from Thalia and Reyna and came over to observe Percy's pathetic tortilla tower.

'You need a stronger foundation,' she said.

'How would you do it?'

She thought for a moment, then smeared bean dip across his chip base as a coagulant. He stacked a couple of chips card-house-style, and they held firm this time.

'Hey, no fair getting help from the architect of Olympus!' Leo complained. His tower was almost a foot tall. Percy had no idea how he'd managed it.

Will sneezed. Both his and Leo's chips went flying into the branches of the mini Christmas tree.

'Hey!' Leo and Piper cried simultaneously.

'Sorry!'

Piper brushed chips out of her tree. It was practically dripping with tinsel and overloaded with shiny baubles.

Leo raised his eyebrows. 'For a daughter of Aphrodite,' he commented, 'you're not doing a great job dressing that thing up, Pipes.'

'Don't call me that,' Piper snapped. 'And what would you know about accessorising, Mechanic-man?'

'I like it,' Calypso said. 'It's colourful.' She glared at Leo, who raised his hands immediately in surrender.

'It does need more white space,' Rachel mused. 'We could do a better job with a bigger tree.'

'Does it look like a bigger tree would fit in here?' Piper spread her arms and smacked Jason's calves, proving her point.

'Well, if it's a bigger tree you need, why don't you dress Thalia up?' Will joked.

Thalia flipped him a gesture that made Grover shoot her an accusing look and reach over to cover the eyes of the two-year-old in Hazel's lap. Reyna grabbed Thalia's offending hand and laced her fingers in it. Thalia grinned ruefully.

'Sorry, Paul,' she said to Percy's stepfather.

Paul accepted this with a shrug. 'I don't think Joy's old enough to understand what that means. Then again, I'd rather she not copy that particular hand signal in public.'

'And I gave up being a tree for Lent,' Thalia shot at Will. 'Oh wait, it wasn't for Lent—it was to save your sorry ass.'

'THALIA!'

Percy laughed. Gaining back six years and resigning as a Hunter certainly hadn't made much of a dent in Thalia's feisty personality.

Joy wriggled against Grover's hands, which were clamped over her ears this time. 'Tree!' she shouted gleefully, and stomped right through the collapsed chip towers and bean dip to Piper, Rachel, and Calypso's trussed up masterpiece.

Annabeth snatched up the plate of blue chocolate chip cookies—only one was left—before Joy could trample it, too. Percy beat Leo to the last cookie and stuck his tongue out at his friend before popping it into his mouth.

'Real generous host you are,' Leo grumbled.

'Hey, all's fair in love and blue cookies!' Percy grinned. 'I'll get more,' he promised, taking the plate from Annabeth. He kissed her on the cheek and got up, brushing crumbs out of his lap.

His mom was bent over the oven when he entered the kitchen.

'You should come join us,' Percy said.

'I will,' said his mom. 'Once this last batch is done.' She eyed the empty plate he set on the kitchen counter. 'Looks like they're a hit.'

'Your cooking's famous,' Percy assured her. 'Thanks for letting us have the party here.'

'You know your friends are always welcome,' said his mom. 'And Paul and I love having you home. Especially after you've been on a quest.' She shook her head. 'Every year I think maybe this will be the year that you stop scaring me with your adventures, but it never ends, does it?'

Percy shrugged. 'We can always hope. I'm sorry I made you worry again, Mom.'

His mom made a little pffft noise and waved her hand dismissively. 'It wasn't your fault. And you're here now. You've always come back.' She reached up to muss his hair. 'Every time, you come back.'

He shifted guiltily, remembering the disastrous Iris-message a few weeks back, when he hadn't a clue who his family was. He was so sick of the way stuff kept coming up—it wasn't just his life it disrupted. There were his friends and family, too, who always got caught in the crossfire of his unpredictable life. He'd hurt so many people over the years, intentionally or not.

His mind flitted to Jessica. He hadn't really thought of her since their catastrophic date, which now felt like something from another life. He wondered how she was getting on with her goal of living a life uncomplicated by the gods. Maybe he should have invited her here as a sort of apology. Then again, given her distaste for her mythological heritage, hanging out with a group of first-generation demigods—not to mention a satyr, a Cyclops, and a harpy—probably wasn't her idea of fun.

'Do you think your life would have been better without all this mythological shit—er, I mean—stuff? If you didn't know it existed?'

'That's a tough question, honey. Do I ever wish things had been simpler? Yes, of course. And I won't deny that the mythological shit,' she winked at him, 'is complicated. But it's easy to blame the gods when really, that's just life. Life's complicated. You don't have to be a demigod for things to keep happening to you.'

He remembered then that her life had been pretty crappy even before she'd ended up a pregnant single mom with a child who had a big target painted on him. Still, could her life have been better if she hadn't met Poseidon, if her path had taken her straight to Paul and Joy without the detours around a delinquent son and an abusive husband?

'I wouldn't give any of it up,' his mom said firmly. 'No matter how hard or painful it was, meeting your dad gave me one of the best things in my life—you. And I wouldn't trade you for anything. Nothing worth having is easy, Percy.'

Percy knew she was right. If there was one thing he knew from all the battles he'd fought, it was that they made him appreciate what he had so much more. The friends he'd made—so loyal that they'd voluntarily descended into a land beyond hell just for him. Those friendships had been forged in quests and tempered by trials into a bond as powerful as the celestial bronze of Riptide. Their last trudge through Tartarus had only strengthened it further.

And he thought of Annabeth. He could hear her laugh rising above the chatter in the next room. He'd known forever that he wanted to build something permanent with her. Now, more than ever, he wanted to seal the deal. His eyes landed on the thin, gold band on his mom's ring finger. If his memories ever got stolen again, he wanted official proof that could remind him of what Annabeth meant to him.

His mom seemed to read his mind. 'I think if you don't pop the question, she might very well ask you.'

'We haven't really talked about it. I mean, we're only sophomores, and I don't even know if I'll make it to graduation, with all the stuff that keeps happening—'

'But you'll get there,' his mom promised. 'You know, when you were a kid, I used to tell you that you could do anything. And you survived everything your world threw at you, you passed high school, and you found a whole family sitting out there.' She waved her hand towards the living room. 'Look at how far you've come, Percy.'

Again, she was right. The future stretched out in his imagination: college graduation, Annabeth in a wedding dress, babies with black hair and grey eyes.

Percy wasn't Rachel; his visions didn't predict anything. But he could work towards making them come true.

The oven timer went off with a ding! His mom pulled out the cookie tray and refilled the empty plate.

'Nothing's impossible, Percy,' she said.

Percy looked down at the full plate. It was his mom's enduring, edible reminder that little miracles could and did happen.

'Cookies can be blue,' he said with a grin.

'Exactly.'

And together, bearing the full plate of blue cookies, Percy and his mom made their way back into the circle of love and family in the next room.

THE END

And that’s a wrap! The end of this massive project that got way out of hand. I actually wrote this epilogue twice. The first version involved Percy and Sally and a long angsty conversation, but it refused to come together and I realised ... well, I needed everyone together for the final curtain call. So here they are. Thank you for sticking with this story. I hope you've enjoyed the ride. I certainly have. And with that, I have to say one more enormous thank you to my betas, @supernaturally-percyjackson and @preciouschildrenofolympus or their help in whipping this monster of a fic into shape. They were an amazing team to have and I am so grateful for all the feedback they've given to help make this story better!

Also, if you haven't yet, go check out @preciouschildrenofolympus‘s amazing art for the story here and here!

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dimensiontripperhibiki · 7 years ago

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Addiction (18/?)

I seem to be in a very Addiction mood at the moment so I guess that’s what I’ll be updating most often. Maybe. Thanks for all of the comments, reblogs etc. You guys are awesome and I really do love to hear what you think about this so...yeah! Enjoy the chapter! Warning(s): Sexual scenes, violence, cheating. Umi was walking down the hallway to the art clubroom when she thought she heard the sound of music coming from another room. She paused in the hallway, listening curiously. It sounded familiar. Very familiar. It didn’t take her longer than a few minutes to recognize the melody as ‘Start dash’. “Odd…” She mumbled to herself. Deciding to go an investigate she followed the sound to the art room at the far end of the corridor. Cautiously, she pushed the door open and stepped inside, the music growing louder. “Oh…” She stopped short just past the doorway. There was only one person in the room. Amagi was sitting in front of a canvas, her side to the door. She was nodding along to the music as she painted, a focused look on her face. She was dressed in her school uniform without the blazer. The left side of her cheek had a streak of red paint on it. The rest of the room was as messy as she was. There were jars of water on almost every surface along with clean and unclean paintbrushes. “You like our music?”

Hibiki startled at the sudden voice and almost fell from her stool. “Ahh, Sonoda-san! I-I um...I didn’t know you’d be around this part of the school. Did you need something?” “Just giving this form to the art club.” Umi held up the form in her hand and stepped further into the room. “So…?” She nodded toward Hibiki’s open laptop. “Oh, y-yeah. Everyone knows Muse…” Hibiki said with a slightly nervous laugh. “Music helps me focus and...yours is great. I’m a big fan.” “Oh yeah? Name more than two of our songs.” Umi said with an expectant smile. As she’d thought, Hibiki’s face fell. She laughed softly in response. “It’s fine. Don’t look so worried.” “Wild Stars and No Brand Girl. And of course, Start Dash.” Hibiki answered, putting down her paintbrush. She looked down, noticing the ring on Umi’s finger. “Oh, so you confessed to them?” “Wha…?” Umi looked down too, blushing when she noticed what Hibiki was referring to. “O-Oh yeah, I um...I did. I would be grateful if you could keep it a secret though. I don’t think she wants anyone to know yet and...it’s complicated.” “It’s Kaichou you’re with, isn’t it?” Hibiki turned more toward Umi, crossing one leg over the other. “I thought there was something odd about the way she looks at you compared to how she looked at Minami-san…” “That’s the complicated part…” Umi uncomfortably rubbed her neck. She wished she could just be with Honoka properly. If she’d just confessed all those months ago they wouldn’t even be in this mess. “She’s my best friend. Kotori, I mean. I feel bad for....this.” “Well I suppose they were going to fall apart eventually if Kaichou had feelings for you. So it’s not your fault.” Hibiki said with a shrug of her shoulders. She looked sincere though. “I’m guessing that’s why you didn’t give me a chance.” “Yeah...I’m sorry about that.” Umi apologized with a wince. “I’m sorry if I hurt your feelings. I know how hard it is to confess to someone. Actually I don’t, I never had the courage to confess.” Hibiki waved her off. “It’s fine, I knew you had feelings for someone. I just wanted to confess. To get everything off my chest, you know? I’m…” She trailed off when she noticed Umi giving her an appraising look. “What?” “You’re not like an ordinary fangirl.” Umi noted thoughtfully. She had plenty of them and Hibiki just wasn’t like them. “I’m not part of your fanclub Fuku-Kaichou. I’m just an admirer, that’s all.” “Wait…” Umi touched her chin with her index finger, trying to figure something out. “Then why did you join archery when you were going to be part of the art club?” Hibiki suddenly looked sheepish. “To be honest, my father made me take one sport. I thought archery would be easy.” She noticed a flicker of outrage cross Umi’s face and grinned at her. “Sorry. I’m not good with sports. I’m an artist.” “I guess that explains how you managed to put an arrow through your hand.” Umi said with a sigh. She rubbed her temples tiredly. “You’re not what I expected. Everyone describes you as being perfect but you’re kind of cheeky too.” Hibiki gave a short laugh. “I hate rumors. Sometimes people should shut up and mind their own business, I think. But the truth is, I don’t care what people say. Not like Nishikino…” “Maki has a hard time fitting in, that’s all.” Umi’s tone turned a little defensive. “She just wants people to like her, I don’t see anything wrong with that. And her dad is strict. I doubt she wants to get in trouble with him over something like someone at school thinking less of her.” “Don’t take it the wrong way, Sonoda-san. I’m not saying anything bad about her, I’m just saying that I think she shouldn’t let her father get to her.” Hibiki said hastily. “She should do what makes her happiest and in my opinion she seems happiest when she’s with Muse. I really wasn’t making fun of her.” “I’m sorry.” Umi finally said with a sigh. “It’s not like I really thought you were...well I kind of did but Maki has had a rough few months and people haven’t always been nice to her. Especially first years. I’m sorry I got the wrong idea. You might want to work on how blunt you are though.” Hibiki shrugged and flashed Umi a grin. “Sorry, Sonoda-san. That’s just how I am.” “Umi.” Umi corrected. She continued when Hibiki frowned in confusion. “You can call me Umi. We’re...kind of friends now, right?” Hibiki smiled widely at the suggestion. “Okay...Umi-tan. You can call me Hibiki” “Eeehh?” “I like giving people nicknames. So Umi-tan. It’s cute, don’t you think?” Hibiki asked somewhat smugly. “You can give me one if you want.” “Uh…” Umi paused, wondering is this was really the girl who’d stuttered out a confession to her. “I think I’ll just call you Hibiki.” Hibiki looked momentarily displeased before she spoke up again. “So if I’m your friend I’m Kaichou’s friend too, right? Can I call her Hocchi?” “What? No! I mean I don’t know. Maybe if you ask her...actually Honoka would probably be into it.” Umi sighed and hung her head. “How are you suddenly so…?” “Forward?” Hibiki asked, raising an eyebrow. “I don’t know. I just feel like I can be myself around you. I never really had many friends except the ones I meet in Shibuya.” “Oh…” Umi said slowly as if that really answered anything. Hibiki could see that Umi didn’t really understand what she was saying. “Look, even if I don’t care about rumors that doesn’t mean I have friends. Fans, sure. But not friends. Besides they don’t know the real me so what’s the point?” “Uh…” Umi took a moment to look the girl over, noticing her shirt was untucked and the sleeves were rolled up to her elbows, she also didn’t have her bow on. It was on the table. She was wearing red chucks rather than the indoor shoes they were meant to wear. Her gaze travelled back up and she noticed the girl was wearing a chain around her neck, a golden paintbrush charm hanging there. Her ears were pierced too, she noticed. She wondered how she’d missed it before. “Wait, I’m sorry...I don’t mean to be rude o-or anything but um...if you’re like...this, um...why did you even like me? I mean I’m boring in comparison.” “It’s always the quiet ones who are the most interesting.” Hibiki said with a coy smirk. “Besides you could say that once I found out you wrote No Brand Girl, I fell in love with your writing.” She watched as Umi turned bright red. “But that’s in the past. Having a friend is better than having a lover sometimes…” “Shameless…” Umi muttered, pressing her hands to her cheeks in an effort to cool herself down. “Aren’t you just as shameless though?” Hibiki raised an eyebrow and nodded toward Umi’s neck. “Looks like you’ve been getting down and dirty with Hocchi.” “Aaah!” Umi’s hand shot to the mark on her neck. “I thought you were so innocent! You’re not like the rumors at all!” “Sorry to disappoint. So what’s the deal?” Hibiki asked, trying to sound unfazed. “You don’t want to be my friend anymore? I don’t think take backs are allowed.” “Of course I do.” Umi said quickly. She flashed Hibiki a reassuring smile. “Just trying to work out how you’d get along with Muse really. Honoka will like you, I’m sure. She’ll be happy you gave her a nickname. She spent so long trying to get me to give her one when we were kids...” “Oooh, inside information.” Hibiki hopped down off her stool. “Anything else?” “You might want to stay away from Nico.” Umi said thoughtfully. “Yazawa-senpai...maybe you’re right. I’d probably make fun of her Nico-Nico nii shtick…” Hibiki said with a nod of her head. “Nozomi might like you. In fact I’m sure she would.” Umi said, looking Hibiki up and down. “You’d probably get on really well with her.” “Nozomin.” Hibiki said with a firm nod of her head. Umi sighed. “The nicknames are going to get annoying…” “Yeah well get used to it Umi-tan.” Hibiki retorted, drawing an exasperated groan from Umi. “So do I get to meet them? You were talking like I get to meet them.” “Maybe eventually.” Umi said with a small smile. She was still a bit puzzled but it hardly mattered. “Oh, I have to get these to the president of the art club. I completely forgot.” “I’ll give them to her. Don’t worry, Umi-tan.” “Oh...thank you.” Umi handed over the forms she needed filled in. “Can you tell her I’ll pick them up tomorrow? If she could leave them on her desk. Or with you. I’ll come and find you after school.” “Alrighty then.” Hibiki grinned as Umi backed away. “I guess I’ll get back to my painting. I hope I didn’t scare you off with the nicknames.” “You didn’t…” Umi hesitated at the door as Hibiki looked back at her painting. “I kind of like mine.” When Hibiki turned toward the door again, Umi was already gone. --- Eli watched Maki pace back and forth in front of her, her brow furrowed with concern. She didn’t know what to say to calm her down. “I don’t want to go.” Maki was muttering under her breath. “I just know papa’s going to pull that crap again. But I have to go. Ugh, I hate this…” “If you’re this worried about it, are you sure I should go with you?” Eli asked uncertainly. She didn’t especially want to go anyway. The way Maki had described it didn’t make the thought of going very appealing. “Of course! Are you kidding me?! You coming with me is the only good thing about the night that I can think of!” Maki protested hurriedly. “I’m sorry. What I mean is that if I have to go to this, you kind of have to go too. That’s one of the key deals with me. Going to this stuffy bullshit.” Eli raised an eyebrow. “Does your dad know you curse like a sailor? Maybe he’d think twice about taking you if he did.” “No...I have slipped in front of mama though.” Maki shook her head, realizing she was getting distracted. “But the point is you have to come. I’ll go to whatever you want me to in the future, I promise!” Eli thought about that for a moment. “There’s a chocolate fair coming up soon…” Maki sighed and rolled her eyes skyward. “You’re worse than Honoka with bread. Fine, I’ll go with you to that if you want.” “I can’t wait.” Eli said, smiling brightly at the agreement. “Fine. No more arguments from me about this. I really don’t think I’m going to fit in here though. I mean a charity fundraiser is a bit…” She trailed off, shrugging her shoulders. “Full of pasty rich assholes? Boring as hell? Yeah, I’d rather be anywhere else. I wonder who’s going to be there.” Maki paced across the room to her laptop and picked up the pamphlet. She read through it silently, her eyes widening. “The Sonodas and Amagis are invited. The Suzuharus’ are going to be there…” Eli tried to place them but couldn’t. “Who are they?” “Suzuharu Jun. One of my childhood suitors and the most obnoxious.” Maki tossed the pamphlet aside in disgust. “He thinks he’s entitled to everything. Including me.” “Entitled to you?!” Eli echoed in disbelief. “Right, that’s it. If he lays even one hand on you, I swear…” “Oh so now you want to go?” Maki asked in amusement. “If it means keeping him away from you, damn right I want to go.” Eli said, getting to her feet. “I need to go and find a dress to wear.” “Eli, it’s not for another week.” “I don’t care. If I’m going to look good enough to be by your side I need to find a decent dress.” Eli said firmly. There was no way she’d lose to this suitor. “Wait…” Maki grabbed Eli’s hand as the blonde made to leave. “Have you seen yourself? I mean...you look like you belong there more than I do. If everyone didn’t know who I am, that is. Trust me, you don’t need a fancy dress. I do have a request though...” “Oh?” Eli asked curiously. “What is it?” “Wear your hair down. You look really pretty with your hair down.” Maki gently drew Eli closer to her and pecked her on the lips. “And let me take that dress off you afterwards.” “Now who’s a perv?” Eli tried to act unaffected but she couldn’t deny the way her chest fluttered with excitement. “Maybe I am…” Maki purred, pressing herself as close as she could to Eli. “Maybe I’ll even wear what I bought when I went shopping with Honoka last sunday. Just for the afterparty at least…” Eli didn’t have an answer for that. In fact she was fairly certain her brain just short-circuited and she could only gape at Maki in surprise. “Li-Like um…” She cleared her throat, realizing she was about to embarrass herself. “What kind of...thing did you buy?” “It’s a secret.” Maki grinned and playfully prodded Eli’s cheek. “You’re blushing.” “I’m not! I’m just...ugh, forget about it. Come here.” Eli grabbed the front of Maki’s shirt and pulled her into a deep kiss, quickly backing them up to the bed. “I really hope I locked the door…” “I did that for you.” Maki mumbled against Eli’s lips. “Fuck, I love you.” Eli muttered back, threading her hands into Maki’s hair as they tumbled back onto the bed behind them. --- “Have you found anything yet?” Eli asked as she watched Nozomi rummaging around in her closet in search of something for her to wear. They were sitting in her bedroom, Eli having invited Nozomi over while she was at school. “It needs to be perfect.” Nozomi gave a soft laugh in response. “You sure are fired up about this, Elichi…” “Eh...kind of. I’m going because she promised to go with me to a chocolate fair in a few weeks. Besides, apparently there’s a guy at the party who’s also her childhood suitor?” Eli shook her head in aggravated disbelief. “I need to keep the entitled jerk away from her.” “Oh right, her family is rich. I always forget about that.” Nozomi tossed a light blue dress onto the bed next to Eli. “I guess she must get that a lot. Suitors and marriage interviews, I mean. She must hate it, what with her being...well gay.” “I hate it and I only just heard about it.” Eli muttered darkly, looking down at her bare feet. “At least with me there the guy will get nowhere near her.” “Like a knight in shining armor.” Nozomi observed teasingly as she went back to rummaging. “That’s sweet.” “Well I’m no Umi, but I try I guess…” Eli answered with a sigh. “What about you? Are you...doing anything with Nico?” “Besides the two of us being confined to my bed? Not really.” Nozomi answered cheekily. She stepped out of the walk in closet with two more dresses, red and black in color. “I think you should go with the blue. Blue looks good on you. Are you going to wear your hair down?” “Yeah, Maki said I should…” Eli idly reached up, touching her ponytail. “I’ll wear the blue dress, like you said. Thank you, Nozomi.” “It’s fine.” Nozomi said with a shake of her head. She went to perch on the bed next to Eli and lightly bumped her shoulder. “You’ll fit right in.” “That’s what Maki said…” Eli said with a shrug of her shoulders. “Do you mind if I ask you something?” “Sure, go ahead.” Nozomi said with a reassuring smile. She could tell that Eli was nervous, just by watching her. “What is it?” “It’s about...college. I’ve been thinking about it for a while. What might happen when we all graduate.” Eli chanced a glance at Nozomi and found that she was listening intently, a sincere look on her face. “Well, I was just wondering...I know we’ve been talking a lot more recently a-and I feel like we might be getting back to normal. Back to being best friends. Um...so I was wondering if we’d still be able t-to see each other after we graduate. Maybe just for coffee every now and then.” “We can have coffee together every morning if you want. You, me and Nicocchi. And we can ‘meet up’ for dinner every night if you want.” Nozomi said with a soft smile. “Wait...w-what are you saying?” Eli shook her head, trying to figure out what Nozomi was implying. “Elichi, you’re my best friend. Do you really think I’d let you live alone? We agreed, remember?” Nozomi lightly touched Eli’s arm and watched as her friend’s eyes welled up with tears. “Hey, hey...don’t cry. It’s...” She trailed off as Eli threw her arms around her, hugging her tightly. She laughed quietly to herself and gently hugged Eli back. “You’re such a sap…” “I can’t help it.” Eli choked out, struggling to stop her tears. “I-I just didn’t think...we’d actually be friends again after…after I...and now we are and...” “Oh jeez, you’re blubbering…” Nozomi gently rubbed Eli’s back, waiting patiently for her to calm down. After a few minutes, Eli pulled away, rubbing at her eyes. “I’m sorry, I’m just...so happy. And relieved. I just have to worry about Maki now…” “Worry about her?” Nozomi echoed in surprise. “Why? I mean if you’re worried about me feeling weird if she comes over, I won’t be. I’m trying to...be okay with it. I am okay with it, I just need a bit more time to be...better with it, I guess? But I won’t keep her from coming over. In fact I think it’s a good idea if she does.” “I actually just meant...it’ll be hard not seeing her all of the time.” Eli said sheepishly. “I’ll see her a lot less than I do now. I’ll be busy with college and studying and who knows how long it would even take her to get to where we live. I mean...what if it’s too much? God, I shouldn’t even be talking to you about this…” “I’ll make sure we get somewhere close to Akihabara.” Nozomi promised with a roll of her eyes. “Relax, Elichi. We’re best friends. We can talk about this stuff now. Sure, it’s not what we were imagining a year ago but I think we’ve both moved on enough. So stop worrying and tell me what you’re thinking...” Eli wasn’t sure but she continued anyway. “I’m thinking...that Maki might not want a part-time girlfriend. Or a relationship with that much distance.” “You’re an idiot. Maki obviously loves you or she wouldn’t have stayed with you through all of this crap.” Nozomi said pointedly. “And look at it this way, she’s going to be busy with school. It’s not easy to get into Tokyo U pre-med. She’ll probably be going to cram school too…” Eli smiled to herself at the answer. “Yeah, she’s so smart…” “Elichi, focus.” Nozomi lightly flicked Eli’s forehead. “I can’t talk to you seriously when you’re fawning over your girlfriend. As I was saying, you’re both going to be busy and she’ll understand. You can skype. And you’ll see her on the weekend. Unless you decide to part every night…” “I’d rather be with Maki.” Eli said hurriedly. “She’ll sleep over. I’ll make sure I have time. She sleeps over at my house on the weekdays all the time now so it’ll be fine. Just not when I have exams. We can study together if we have to.” “There. You have your solution.” Nozomi said smugly. “ I told you it would…” She trailed off as her phone rang. Quickly plucking it from her pocket she found that Nico was calling her. “Oh sorry, It’s just Nicocchi.” She answered the phone, turning partially away from Eli. “Hey Nicocchi…” “Are you done with helping the moron yet? I’m making dinner.” Nozomi wasn’t surprised to hear Nico was at her apartment. She’d given her the spare key a few weeks ago. “Oh? What are you making?” “My famous curry. So you’d better hurry up and get here already.” Nozomi smirked and lowered her voice. “Well you need to motivate me. What are you wearing?” Nico released an irritated sigh. “An apron.” “Anything under it?” Nozomi asked hopefully. “NOZOMI! JUST GET OVER HERE FOR DINNER ALREADY!” “Fine, fine. I’ll see you soon, Nicocchi.” Nozomi hung up the call and turned to Eli who was pretending not to listen. “I have to go, Elichi. I’ll see you tomorrow?” “Sure.” Eli said with a small smile. She got up when Nozomi did. “Nozomi?” Nozomi turned only to find herself engulfed in another tight hug. She returned it just as enthusiastically. “I’m so glad you’re happy.” Eli whispered sincerely. “And thank you for everything you’ve done. What you said earlier.” “Don’t get sappy on me again.” Nozomi teased, giving Eli another brief squeeze before she pulled away. “But I’m glad you’re...happy too.” “Thank you.” Eli said, doing her best not to tear up again. “I’m gonna call Maki and tell her I have everything ready. Thanks for all of the help.” Nozomi waved her off as she crossed to the door. “It’s what friends do.” ---- “Are you sure you don’t want to just stay in the council room?” Umi asked, glancing over at Honoka. “You don’t have to come with me, I’m just picking up some forms.” “I want to. I don’t want you to go alone and I really don’t want to be alone with Kotori-chan right now…” Honoka said with a shrug of her shoulders. “Do you not want me to come?” “Of course I do.” Umi reached out and took Honoka’s hand. “I’m glad you’re here, I just didn’t want you to feel obligated or anything.” “Well I…” Honoka paused as something caught her attention. “Wait, is someone playing No Brand Girl?”

“Yeah.” Umi grinned and tugged at Honoka’s hand, urging her to keep going. “I actually have a...friend I want you to meet.” “Oh?” Honoka asked curiously as Umi tugged her into a room. When she saw who Umi was talking about her face fell. “Oh…” She recognized the girl immediately as the first year who had confessed to Umi. She looked different, dressed in a blank tanktop rather than her school shirt but there was no denying who she was. “Please give her a chance. She’s more than the rumors say…” Umi said hopefully, giving Honoka’s hand another light squeeze. Hibiki looked up at the sound of someone’s voice. “Umi-tan!” She exclaimed, hopping down from her stool. “You came! And you brought Hocchi! You don’t mind if I call you that, right?” “Eh?!” Honoka stepped back slightly as the girl approached. “Hocchi? What…?” She looked over the girl, noticing the piercings in her ears and the fact that she was wearing white chucks with little designs on them. “I’m confused…” “It’s normal to be confused with an artist.” Hibiki grinned. She walked to her school bag, rummaging through it for a moment before she took out some sweet bread and tossed it at Honoka who barely managed to catch. “I was going to eat it for lunch but forgot. Umi-tan says you like bread?” “Thank you, um…?” “Oh. It’s Hibiki. But you can call me whatever you want.” Hibiki pulled a couple of forms from her bag and handed them to Umi. “Your forms, Fuku-Kaichou…” “Thanks.” Umi smiled at the formality and took the forms, casting a quick glance at Honoka who still looked bewildered. “So...if you call me Hocchi, can I call you um…” Honoka seemed to think for a moment, tossing ideas around in her head. “Biki-chan?” “Biki…” Hibiki smiled brightly at the suggestion. “That’s so cute! Okay, sure. You can call me that if you want. Umi-tan, you could…” Umi shook her head. “I’m sticking with Hibiki. Your name is fine as it is.” Hibiki pouted and crossed her arms in front of her. “You’re no fun…” “Umi-chan’s never been any fun.” Honoka said, flashing a teasing smile at Umi. “That’s not to say she’s not fun to be around though.” “Oh, you’re wearing a ring too!” Hibiki exclaimed, noticing the ring hanging from a chain around Honoka’s neck. “Do you mind if I take a look?” “Uh…” Honoka almost took a wary step back but then Hibiki was in front of her, carefully holding the ring between two nail polished fingers. “Oooh you have nice taste!” “Well um...Maki-chan helped me pick them out.” Honoka said hesitantly. “So it’s kind of her taste, not mine.” “Well you had good enough taste to say yes to them.” Hibiki dropped the ring and took a step back. “I figure you got it in Shibuya, right? I got my charm there too.” She held up the charm hanging from her necklace for Honoka to see. “Um...Biki-chan?” Honoka felt a bit guilty as bright eyes turned to her. “Didn’t you like Umi-chan?” “Oh yeah, but she rejected me so that’s over now. I had my hunches that I would, you know?” Hibiki shrugged her shoulders. “Besides, I think being her friend would be better. Especially if I can seduce the hot Kaichou or Treasury-san.” “Okay, I’ve had enough of your flirting.” Umi took Honoka’s hand and pulled her close to her side. “Honoka’s not available. Not at all.” “Relax, I won’t go after Hocchi.” Hibiki said with a reassuring smile. “She’s off limits. I get it already.” “Oooh.” Honoka pulled away from Umi and crossed the room to the easel Hibiki had been sitting in front of. There was a half finished painting sitting there. “This is awesome!” “Oh, you like it?” Hibiki walked up behind Honoka, to look at her painting. “It’s an unfinished painting of a traditional japanese landscape. With a brighter flare. I’ve been trying pointillism but damn is it hard…” Umi leaned back against the door behind her, watching with a small smile as Honoka leaned forward to get a better look. She was glad the two of them were getting along so well. ----

Eli was beyond nervous. She was standing outside of the hotel the charity fundraiser was to take place in and she was sure it was the grandest hotel she’d ever seen. She felt truly out of place. She checked her watch. Maki wasn’t late but she still wasn’t there and it was making her even more nervous. “Ugh, why did I get here so early…?” “Are you lost?” Eli looked around at the sound of a male voice. “Huh?” “Over here, idiot.” “Who are you calling…?” Eli trailed off as she looked up and met the bright hazel eyes of a young man with slick back dark hair. He was tall, wearing a black suit. He looked to be at least 5’10. Maybe 5’11. “Uh…” “Charmed. Are you here for the fundraiser? I’ve never seen you around before. Are you friends with Nishikino?” “Uh…” “You’re not very ladylike.” The man said, seemingly amused. “Could it be that you’re just a foreigner?” “Hey, I’m half Japanese!” Eli exclaimed, affronted. “Oh so your hair is natural.” “And why would that be a problem?” Eli asked defensively, taking a step back. “It’s not, I just prefer pure Japanese girls. Not…” The young man looked Eli over in distaste. “Where are you from anyway?” “That’s not your business!” Eli’s cheeks flushed red with anger. “And I didn’t ask you for your opinion of me. Maybe you should keep them to yourself.” “Jun, back off!” Eli breathed a sigh of relief as Maki appeared at her side. She hadn’t even noticed her coming. She had been too wrapped up in her argument with the obtuse boy in front of her. “Wait…” “Ah, my dear Maki-san. Looks like we’re here together again.” The young man suddenly looked especially happy and Eli growled in annoyance. “Shut it, you were being a jerk to my girlfriend, weren’t you?” Maki scowled angrily and reached back for Eli’s hand. She didn’t look away from Jun but thankfully she felt Eli slip her hand into hers. “Girlfriend? This...halfling is your girlfriend?” “Yes, she is. And if you have a problem, I’ll step on your toes. Making it real hard for you to dance…” Maki warned angrily. “You were always a feisty one, Maki-san. But I’ll stop. Still, she isn’t my type at all. What are you, American?” “Russian.” Eli answered through gritted teeth. She turned toward Maki, lowering her voice. “If I don’t leave, I might hit him.” Maki bit her lip, not quite managing to bite back a smile. “Alright, let’s go inside.” She turned back to Jun, narrowing her eyes. “Jun we’re going inside. Don’t follow us.”

Jun scoffed. "You can't tell me what to do, Maki-san. Remember our fathers might arrange a marriage between us...despite your little phase.” Maki clenched her hand into a fist and would have stepped forward to punch Jun had Eli not dragged her away. “Fuck! He’s such an entitled bastard.” “Cool it with the cursing, Maki.” Eli said, soothingly rubbing the back of Maki’s hand. “Let’s just relax and try to have a good night together, okay? We’ll just stay away from him. Let me buy you a drink.” “Alcoholic?” Maki asked dryly. Eli laughed as she stepped into the hotel with Maki though it quickly died on her lips. “Holy shit, this place is huge.” She looked around, noticing the red decor with gold trims. There were more paintings on the wall than she could count. All traditional Japanese. “Language.” Maki let go of Eli’s hand and tangled her arm with Eli’s instead, pressing close to her side. “I really do want something alcoholic to drink though…” “You’re fifteen!” Eli pointed out incredulously. Maki shrugged her shoulders. “Papa lets me drink. I have a high tolerance…” Eli sighed and rolled her eyes as she led Maki further into the hotel. Noticing everyone entering a large room, she followed and immediately spotted a huge stage. “Rich girls…” “Isn’t your grandmother rich? I mean she was a famous dancer in Russia, wasn’t she?” Maki asked skeptically. Eli winced. “I mean...yeah. But can we not talk about obaa-san?” She reluctantly explained when Maki looked confused. “In Russia they’re more strict about...us than they are here. Surprisingly.” “Oh, yeah. I see that.” Maki bit her lip guiltily, noticing that Eli seemed a bit down now. “Um…” “Anyway!” Eli seemed to force herself to brighten up. “Shall we go, my dear?” “Eli!” Eli turned around as someone called her name and found Umi, Honoka and another girl standing behind her. Umi, who had been the one to call her name, was dressed in a traditional Kimono while Honoka was wearing a pale pink gown. The shorter girl whom she didn’t recognize was wearing a dark blue and black ruffle dress. “Oh hey Umi, you look...nice. You too, Honoka. You scrub up well.” Eli teased, flashing Honoka a grin. “I’m surprised you’re here though. I didn’t really think these fundraisers would be your thing.” “I could say the same thing to you.” Honoka countered, glancing back at Umi who was hovering a little behind her. “Umi-chan made me come because she hates these things.” “Same with Maki.” Eli gave Maki a gentle squeeze. “These things aren’t what I’d call fun at all. I’d rather be at home right now.” “Shit, I really wish I had my paint and canvas right now.” Hibiki said excitedly as she watched Honoka press herself closer to Umi in response to Eli’s gesture. She shrugged when they turned to look at her. “What? You’re all so gay, it’s beautiful! Oh, sorry. I’m Amagi Hibiki by the way. Umi-tan’s friend.” Maki didn’t have time to ask what the ‘Umi-tan’ was about when she was called over by her dad. She huffed out a sigh and pulled away from Eli. “Sorry. I’ll be right back.” She walked away, muttering to herself. “If he shoves me with another one of his colleague’s sons, I fucking swear…” Eli watched Maki go with a frown on her face. When she looked back to where Honoka was standing, the girl was gone and Umi was nowhere in sight either. Instead a tall, redheaded, freckled faced young man wearing a dark blue suit was standing in front of her. Eli took a wary step back, remembering her encounter with Jun outside. “Um…” “Oh, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to startle you.” The young man said, holding up his hands. He smiled sheepishly and shrugged his shoulders. “I just couldn’t help but notice that you’re a...well…” Eli huffed out a sigh. She’d had just about enough of this. “Foreigner. Yeah, yeah. I get it. I’m part Russian if that’s your next question.” “Oh, I wasn’t going to...I’m sorry, I think we got off on the wrong foot. My name is Dekomori Kenneth. I’m not from here either and people keep giving me odd looks so I was wondering if it would be okay for me to talk to you for a while.” Kenneth laughed and awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck. “I guess...that’s fine. I’m Ayase Eli. It’s nice to meet you.” Eli awkwardly held out her hand and Kenneth took it, giving it a light shake. “So where are you from? If you don’t mind me asking. You’re probably tired of people asking you that.” Across the room, Maki watched, half paying attention to her father as he introduced her to a boy she’d yet to bother making eye contact with. She gritted her teeth as she watched the redhead Eli was speaking to hold her hand a little too long for her liking. “Oh. Well I’m half Irish.” Kenneth answered as Eli let go of his hand. “To be honest, I was happy when I noticed you over here.” Eli wasn’t sure what to say to that so she settled for nodding. Kenneth cleared his throat. “Um...I noticed you were here with Nishikino-san. I can’t wait to hear her play later. She truly is a gifted musician.” “Yeah, she...wait, what?” Eli frowned in confusion. “Maki’s playing later? I...didn’t know that.” She looked around for Maki but she couldn’t see her. “I wonder why she didn’t tell me…” “Sorry, I have a habit of putting my foot in my mouth.” Kenneth seemed to blush as red as his hair. “You two seem close. Maybe she just wanted to surprise you or something like that.” “Maybe…” Eli mused, biting her lip. “I don’t know. It seems like something she would do. So who are you he-” She trailed off as Maki finally came into view. “Maki, you’re back.” “Yep.” Maki stepped over to Eli and leaned up, kissing her cheek, right next to her lips. She glanced at the redhead she’d been glaring at for the past five or so minutes. “Goodbye, Dekomori-san.” “Wha…?” Kenneth’s eyes widened in surprise. “I’m sorry, I seem to have done something wrong. My apologies. It was nice meeting you, Ayase-san.” He rushed off and Eli turned to Maki with a frown. “Maki! Why would you do that? He just wanted someone to spend time with, that’s all. He seemed nice.” “I’m not just going to let some guy flirt with my girlfriend!” Maki exclaimed indignantly. “You’re mine. And I’m yours and there’s nothing anyone can damn well do to get between us, especially some idiot boys we don’t know!” “I know that.” Eli soothingly placed her hands on Maki’s shoulders. “You really hate these things, don’t you?” “Of course I hate these things.” Maki said bitterly. “I feel like a puppet, having to entertain for these people. I know it’s about politics and it’s about the charity but...ugh. I hate it. I hate feeling like I’m being paraded around, forced to meet people I don’t want to meet. I really hate being rich sometimes, I wish I could be anywhere but here.” “We can. Let’s just go.” Eli grinned at the look of astonishment that appeared on Maki’s face in wake of her words. “Come on, nobody will notice. Just for a few minutes?” Maki was torn. She looked between her father and her mother before sighing. “You know I can’t…” Eli pursed her lips and looked around the room, trying to figure out an escape route. Noticing the buffet table, she grinned as an idea came to mind. She had seen this in a romance movie she’d watched with Arisa the previous week. “I have an idea, come on!” Before Maki could argue she was being tugged over to the buffet table. When Eli ducked under it, she had no choice but to follow suit. The tablecloth fell into place behind her. “What are we doing?” She hissed. “This is crazy!” “You wanted to get out, right?” Eli asked expectantly. “This way we’re not at the party but we’re still present. It’s just you and me right now though…” Maki felt tears prickle at her eyes. “You sure know how to make a girl cry…” Eli’s eyes widened as Maki threw her arms around her. She barely managed to keep her balance on her hands but she was quick to hug Maki back. Her eyes caught on something red and black on Maki’s shoulder. “I-Is that your bra strap?” “Afterparty, remember?” Maki pulled back, chuckling. She leaned in and pressed her lips to Eli, feeling the familiar nerves that always came with kissing her in a public setting before she calmed down. She pulled back, lightly brushing Eli’s hair back from her face. “I love you.” “I love you too.” Eli smiled softly, turning to press a kiss to the hand that lingered on her cheek. “But...what brought this on? Not that I’m complaining but…” Maki shrugged. “I just want you to know. You make me so calm, just being here with you makes me calm.” Eli grinned at the praise. “I’m glad I can be of help.” The sound of music caught Maki’s attention. “Do you want to dance?” Eli looked sceptical. “In here?” Maki laughed at the question. “No, you idiot.” She kissed Eli again, chuckling gently against her lips. “Out there. I want to dance with you.” “Are you sure? I don’t want to piss your dad off or make things hard for you.” Eli said in concern. “Maybe we could find another room and…” “Eli!” Maki pouted and Eli had to bite back a smile. “Come on, please. I just want to dance with my girlfriend. Just once, I promise. Please?” “You’re so not playing fair.” Eli muttered as she got out from under the table, Maki emerging right behind her. Thankfully nobody noticed. Quickly they straightened out their dresses before Maki took charge and led Eli to the dancefloor. “You’ll lead?” Maki whispered, pointedly ignoring the looks they were receiving in favor of focusing on Eli’s eyes. “Of course.” Eli smiled back and placed her right hand on Maki’s back, just below her shoulder blades. She felt Maki’s right hand slip into her left and a hand come to rest on her shoulder. ---- Honoka smiled and rested her chin on her open palm as she watched Eli begin to lead Maki in their dance. It was beyond romantic, she thought with a sigh. “So she’s really gonna come out of the closet.” Hibiki remarked, leaning back in her seat. “She’s braver than me and Umi-tan…” Honoka turned to her with a frown. “Umi-chan and I are going to get married.” “Whoa, what?!” Hibiki had been tipping back on her seat and almost fell back. She would have had she not grasped the table in time. “Seriously…?” “Honoka…” Umi sighed though she looked happy with the comment rather than upset. “Can I be your maid of honor?” Hibiki grinned. “Kotori-chan is…” Honoka paused, her eyes widening slightly. She hadn’t even thought before she’d said that. It had just come out. She wasn’t even speaking to Kotori at the minute. She swallowed thickly against the lump in her throat. “You might have to fight Eli-senpai for it…” Umi reached over and took Honoka’s hand, giving it a supportive squeeze. “Okay then. Best girl?” Hibiki noticed the sudden serious turn and decided to lighten the mood. “Please? Please, please, please?” “Fine!” Umi groaned and rolled her eyes. “You’ll have to do something deserving of the title though.” Hibiki was just thinking about what she could do and Umi was about to ask Honoka if she was alright when a male voice caught her attention. “So Nishikino really is a dyke. Figures. She always did seem weird as a kid.” Umi looked up to see Suzuharu Jun standing near their table, staring at Maki and Eli with disgust on his face. She was about to tell him to be quiet when Honoka shot to her feet. Icy dread washed over her but she didn’t have time to move. Honoka was already rushing toward him and before Umi could do anything, she had punched him square in the jaw, sending him stumbling onto a nearby table. “Oh shit.” Surprisingly, Hibiki jumped into the fray, grabbing Honoka by the back of her gown and hauling her back. Unfortunately Honoka wasn’t going to be deterred and struggled, managing to elbow Hibiki in the chin. Hibiki cried out in pain and let go of Honoka, her eyes watering. “Shit…” Luckily, Umi managed to get up and grab Honoka before she could move. The music abruptly cut off as Jun finally managed to get off the table. “What the hell, bitch?!” “Shut up, you bastard!” Honoka was seething, her eyes alight with rage. “Umi, what on earth is going on?!” Umi looked up in time to see that her mother had rushed to the table in concern. “Um…” “Sonoda-san, what is your daughter’s guest doing?!” Umi wasn’t sure who said that but she didn’t care to check. “She hurt Amagi-san’s daughter!” “That’s not all she did.” Jun angrily pointed to his bleeding lip. “They really do just let any nobody in here, don’t they?!” “What an ill behaved girl…” Someone mused thoughtfully. “Don’t talk about her like that!” Umi snapped angrily though she didn’t notice who had said it. She heard someone come up behind her and looked over, ready to tell them to back off. It was only Maki and Eli though. The each took one of Honoka’s arms and pulled her away from Umi, quickly leading the way outside of the hotel. Hurriedly, Umi followed. The four of them stayed silent as Maki steered Honoka around the corner of the hotel. Maki pressed Honoka back against the wall so they could stay hidden. She opened her mouth to yell at her but paused, noticing she was in tears. “What the hell happened back there? Why did you do that?” Honoka silently shook her head as Umi appeared at her side. “Damn it, Honoka.” Umi muttered, glancing back over her shoulder to make sure nobody had followed. “Honoka, why did you do that?” Eli asked again, firmer than Maki had. “You need to tell us so we can understand!” “I did it for Maki-chan!” Honoka exclaimed loudly. She pressed her hand to her mouth, trying to choke back a sob. “He deserved it! He was saying really mean things about you and I didn’t want to hear it! He doesn’t know you, h-he had no right!” Maki softened at how upset Honoka seemed to be. And on her behalf at that. “Honoka…” She trailed off as she heard footsteps approaching. She looked up in time to see her father rounding the corner. “Papa…” “I think it’s best if you go home for the rest of the evening.” Jin said, pausing a few feet from the group of girls. “You’ve caused just about enough problems for the night.” “Are you…?” Maki trailed off, at a loss. “Is that all you care about? My grades and my status? Papa, I’m sick of being treated like this. You know I’m dating someone and it’s not a phase. I’m...in love. I’m in love with her.” She blindly grasped for Eli’s hand. “I’m gay. I’ve never been interested in boys and I’m certainly never going to marry one!” “You’re only acting like this because you’re in an all girl’s school.” Jin said with a weary shake of his head. “After all, it all started with an affair in school.” “No, I’m not! Even when I’m in college, I’ll prefer women!” Maki retorted in frustration. “Do you really think Eli is the only girl I’ve ever liked? She’s not! I even liked girls in junior high and it was a co-ed school. It’s NOT A PHASE!” Jin was silent for a moment, contemplating what to say. “Maki, please think about what you’re saying. We are not in North America or Europe.” “I know that!” Maki’s voice was choked with emotion but otherwise firm. “I’m sick of hiding who I am and letting people think this is nothing. It isn’t nothing to me!” Jin sighed. He could see that Maki was getting increasingly upset. He looked to Eli, causing her eyes to widen in alarm. It amused him slightly, that the girl seemed intimidated by him. He supposed he should feel like that. He would want anyone pursuing Maki to be intimidated by him. “Ayase.” “Y-Yes sir!” Eli squeaked, straightening up. “Take care of my daughter tonight. I’ll try to keep people from speaking about what happened this evening.” Jin’s gaze flicked to Maki who looked close to tears. He could tell that she would be much better off with her friends tonight. With her girlfriend. “Just please protect her.” He turned his attention to Umi next. “As for you, Sonoda-san, I’ll leave it to your parents to speak to you about your guest’s...misbehavior.” He turned to walk away but paused after a couple of steps. “Kousaka-san. I would never say that violence is right but I understand you were defending my daughter. I appreciate that.” “Uh…” Honoka stared after Jin as he disappeared around the corner. “I thought that would be a lot worse…” She wiped quickly at her tearstained cheeks. “Maki-chan, I-I’m sorry. I was just...after what happened at school two months ago, I-I never want to hear anyone bullying you again.” “You idiot.” Maki let go of Eli’s hand and stormed over to Honoka, hugging her fiercely. Every time she’d been targeted by someone, Honoka had jumped to her defence without a second thought. It was easy to see why Eli admired her so much. “You damn idiot.” She felt Umi and Eli join the hug, embracing them both tightly but she made no effort to pull away. She was too spent, both physically and emotionally. “Hey are you guys okay?” Eli, Umi and Maki stepped away and Honoka looked toward the corner, seeing Hibiki walking toward them. “Oh god, Biki-chan, I’m so…” “Eh, it’s nothing.” Hibiki briefly touched her jaw. “I got the asshole to tell me what he said after you left. Then I punched him again. Now he’s crying because I broke his nose or whatever but man is his face made out of metal or what?” She held up her right hand, showing her grazed and bleeding knuckles. --- Nico watched as Kotori picked at the food on her plate, her eyes downcast. She’d barely taken two bites. “Could you please stop moping and eat something? You’re going to make yourself sick.” “I can’t.” Kotori looked up at Nico. She felt like she couldn’t swallow past the lump in her throat. “Honoka-chan hasn’t spoken to me in two weeks. A-And Umi-chan keeps asking me if I’m alright and I just...” She trailed off, biting her lip as she looked down at her food. “I’m sorry, Nico-chan. Your cooking is lovely but I can’t.” Nozomi sighed and put down her chopsticks. “Where are they anyway?” Kotori shrugged her shoulders. “Umi-chan had to attend a fundraiser. I don’t know where Honoka-chan is.” “You’re going to have to apologize even if you don’t want to.” Nico pointed out. “You shouldn’t have confessed when…” “I know, I know!” Kotori exclaimed irritably. She’d heard it from Nico a hundred times already. “I know, okay? Shit, I haven’t even told Umi-chan about it. She’s probably going to ignore me after that. She should already be ignoring me...” “It’s good that you realize what you did to her was wrong.” Nozomi said with an approving nod of her head. “You just have to prove you really are sorry.” “Umi-chan is sorry too.” Kotori muttered, scuffing her foot against the floor. “She keeps saying that. She should be sorry.” “Look why don’t we just relax and watch a movie?” Nozomi suggested hopefully. “Kotori-chan, you need to stop thinking about this so much. If you obsess over it it’s going to drive you crazy.” “I guess…” Kotori mumbled though she couldn’t help but want to talk about it. “I’ll go and find a movie.” Nozomi stood up and squeezed Kotori’s shoulder before she walked out of the room, calling over her shoulder. “Nicocchi, don’t you dare touch those dishes!” Nico scoffed and shook her head, standing up and reaching for the dishes. “NICOCCHI!” “Ugh, how does she do that…?” Nico muttered, rolling her eyes. She set the dishes down and glanced over at Kotori. “Come on. I guess she’ll take care of the dishes later.” “R-Right!” Kotori stood up though she hesitated to move. “Um...why are you still being nice to me?” “I don’t know.” Nico sighed. “Just because you were being ignorant and selfish that doesn’t mean they weren’t. Still I’m not as mad at them as I was with Eli. They were wrong but it was inevitable.” Kotori nodded and finally followed Nico through into the other room. Nozomi was sitting in the middle of the couch, a movie just starting up on the TV screen. She patted the seats at each side of her, summoning them over. “Turn the lights off, Nicocchi. I found a horror movie.” “Great.” Nico groaned though she obediently turned the lights out before she moved to the couch. She sat at one side of Nozomi, leaning close to her while Kotori quietly took the other side. Kotori watched the two as the movie started, taking note of the way Nico shifted closer to Nozomi until she was practically pressed against her. In turn, Nozomi’s arm went around Nico’s shoulders though she didn’t say anything. She didn’t even tease her like Kotori had thought she would. Nico’s head came to rest on Nozomi’s shoulder and Kotori’s brow furrowed. She wanted to ask them if they were together but before she had a chance, a scream rang out from the tv. It didn’t especially startle her. What did startle her was the answering shriek from Nico. She looked to the screen, noticing the ghost emerging from a painting. She giggled as she looked back at Nico, finding she’d buried her face in Nozomi’s chest. “Nicocchi, are you okay?” Nozomi asked, struggling to hide her amusement. “Y-Yeah, it’s just...you know I hate this stuff.” Nico peeked at the screen only to let out another yelp and hide her face again. “Should I turn it off?” Nozomi gently rubbed Nico’s back to soothe her. “N-No, just keep doing that. I’ll be fine…” Nico let out a shuddering sigh and tried to turn back to the movie. “If I’d known you were this scared of horror movies I’d have offered to hold your hand, Nico-chan.” Kotori said, a slightly teasing tone to her voice. Nico was about to snap at her for teasing her but hesitated, realizing that Kotori was making an effort to cheer herself up. “I’m fine. Unless you’re scared?” “A little.” Kotori lied, averting her eyes briefly to the TV screen. “I mean I’ll be fine though…” “I guess it can’t be helped then…” Nico sighed and got up from the couch, switching spaces with Nozomi. She pressed herself close to Nozomi again but held out her hand to Kotori who took it and held it carefully. “I’m not gonna break you know.” Nico said with a roll of her eyes, tightening her grip on Kotori’s hand. Kotori tightened hers in response. “Nicocchi is so sweet.” Nozomi whispered in Nico’s ear, causing her to blush brightly in response. “Yeah, whatever. Just shut up…” “Both of you are cute.” Kotori observed with a soft smile. They would make a good couple, she thought. If they weren’t already. “Ugh, both of you shut up!” Nico exclaimed. “Fine. Sorry, Nicocchi.” Nozomi pressed her lips just behind Nico’s ear, causing her to shudder slightly. Kotori had been watching them and had noticed Nozomi’s gesture. Her eyes widened in realization and she quickly turned back to the movie. So they were together. That certainly explained a lot. “Um, I was thinking maybe I should go home tonight. I know you said I should stay over but maybe I should…” “Stay over? Sure.” Nozomi looked past Nico at Kotori. “It’s Friday and you told your mom so it’s no big deal, right? Besides, if you leave me along with Nicocchi she might take advantage.” Nico scoffed. “Screw you.” She said, her tone light. “See?” Nozomi smirked. “Come on, just stay. We want you to stay, right Nicocchi? We can stay up watching movies until we fall asleep.” “Of course we do. We offered, didn’t we?” Nico agreed, glancing at Kotori. “You’re staying.” “O-Okay…” Kotori leaned back against the couch with a small smile. At least she still had Nico and Nozomi. --- “Arisa is sleeping over at Honoka’s so we shouldn’t be interrupted tonight.” Eli said as she stepped into her apartment, Maki’s hand in her own. She glanced back as Maki paused to close the door behind them. She couldn’t help but notice how drained Maki still looked. “Do you want something to drink? I could make coffee.” Maki shook her head and looked up at Eli. “Shut up.” “Ehh? What did I…?” Eli promptly fell silent as Maki pushed her against the nearby wall. The question on her lips was answered when Maki leaned in and kissed her deeply, pressing their bodies flush together. Eli kissed Maki back without hesitation, her arms going around her girlfriend’s waist to pull her close. It wasn’t more than a few seconds before she felt Maki’s hands go to her gown, bunching up the fabric so that she could touch bare skin. She gasped softly as Maki’s thigh slipped between hers, pressing firmly against her centre. She turned her head, even as Maki’s teeth tugged at her lower lip. “W-Wait, aren’t we going too fast…?” “I would say we’re not going fast enough.” Maki pressed her knee up further, causing Eli to whimper. “I’ve been thinking about doing this all night. And I think you have too. You feel ready…” “Ahh, Maki…” Eli tilted her head back, her eyes closing as Maki’s lips danced over the skin of her collarbones and down her chest. She did want to take it slowly but she wanted Maki to touch her even more. “Do whatever you want to me.” She hooked her leg around Maki’s waist and tried to grind closer to her. “Now who’s trying to make this go faster?” Maki mumbled against Eli’s heated skin. “Maybe I should draw it out. I do want to take my time with you at some point tonight. Really take my time and touch and kiss you everywhere, listen to you whimper and moan my name…” “Maki, you’re killing me…” Eli whimpered as Maki lowered her foot back to the ground. “Hey…” “Shhh.” Maki kissed Eli again, humming in satisfaction at the taste of the blonde’s lips. She reached around for the zipper of Eli’s dress and slowly unzipped it. With a couple of well placed tugs it pooled at Eli’s feet. She looked her over, biting her lip. “I’ve seen these but I’ve seen you wearing them for me. I got a new set I want you to see really badly, Eli…” Eli’s mind raced to her brief glimpse of Maki’s bra strap back at the hotel. “Show me.” Maki chuckled low in her throat. “I don’t know. Maybe I should make you wait until after I’ve had my way with you.” She slid her fingers down Eli’s stomach, into her panties. “W-We’re not even in the bedroom yet…” Eli protested meekly. “I want to do you against the wall.” Maki slid her fingers through slick, heated folds and Eli moaned and threw her head back, hitting the wall with a thump. “You’re wet. How much were you trying to keep yourself from misbehaving at that stupid party anyway?” “You looked really hot. In your dress.” Eli moaned and grasped at Maki’s shoulder in case her knees buckled. “And seeing your bra strap kind of...turned me on. Just what are you wearing anyway?” “You’ll have to see when I get you upstairs. I think you’ll like it. Just sit back and let me make you feel good for now though.” Maki drew back her hand, sinking down and tugging Eli’s panties down her legs. “Take off your bra.” “W-Why don’t you do it yourself?” Eli stuttered, trying to gain some kind of control over the situation. She was answered with a dark laugh followed by a slightly stinging bite to her thigh. “Ahh, okay okay…” She leaned slightly away from the wall and reached behind her, unclasping her bra. She tugged it down her arms and tossed it somewhere to the side. “Maki, I want to touch you…” “Later, I promise. I’m-” “Not later. To my room, now.” Eli said firmly, finally running out of patience. “Alright, alright.” Maki straightened up and kissed Eli briefly. “Just let me pick your clothes up in case your parents come home. I’ll meet you in your bedroom.” Eli felt a surge of excitement. “O-Okay.” She kissed Maki once more before she turned and headed toward the bedroom, adding an exaggerated sway to her hips. Maki stared at Eli’s ass as she walked away, only looking away when Eli was out of view. “Okay, Nishikino. You can do this. Just like in those American TV shows and movies. You’ve got this.” She took a deep breath before she scooped up Eli’s clothes and made her way to the bedroom. She found Eli lying on her bed, propped up by her elbows. “God…” She muttered to herself, her eyes raking over the blonde. She closed the door behind her and dumped Eli’s clothes on the floor. She made sure the door was locked before she stepped closer to the bed, unzipping the dress herself. Her stomach fluttered with nerves but she pushed at it, letting it pool at her feet in much the same way as Eli’s had earlier. Eli felt her jaw drop as she looked at the garter belts, black stockings and the practically see through lacy red and black panties and bra. “Th-This is what you bought?” She asked, licking her lips as she looked Maki over. The bra pushed her breasts up and somehow made them look bigger while the panties hugged her hips perfectly. “Uuuhh…” Maki planted a hand on her hips, letting Eli’s gaze rake over her. “You’re staring too much.” “I-I can’t help it.” Eli looked up at Maki, noticing that her ears to her neck were red with embarrassment. It was obvious she was trying to look sexy but she was nervous about it at the same time. “Come here.” She reached out for Maki who took her hand. With a quick yank, she pulled Maki on top of her and kissed her deeply. “You’re so fucking gorgeous, Maki. If you think I’m going to let you sleep tonight, you’re wrong…” “Wha…?” Maki yelped as Eli flipped them over and kissed her again. She didn’t argue though. She settled for wrapping her arms around Eli’s neck, drawing her closer as she needily kissed the blonde back. TBC

#EliMaki #HonoUmi #KotoHono #NozoNico #Fanfiction

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nozoroomie · 8 years ago

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Confessing Really Shouldn’t be this Difficult Chapter 1: Love Letter Part 1

Summary: Confession attempt number one: An incredibly crafted love letter, written with the help of her two best friends. The stationery is perfect, the letter is dropped off at just the right time, and everything seems to be in place. What could possibly go wrong?

Notes: Hello everyone! Welcome to the very first -official- chapter of this story! Thank you for being so patient and hanging on to just the prologue for so long- I promise I'll try to keep up with regular updates. If things go well, hopefully every 2-3 weeks a new chapter will be posted!

Small note: Every time "Line" is mentioned, it's referring to the instant messaging app!

And a special HUGE thank you to @banditchika , I'm love you, thank you so so much for all your help betaing this and helping me figure out better ways to word my sentences, and to @ Sessaware for also reading it over and giving me her input! Thank you both again so so much ;w;.I hope you guys enjoy this first chapter!

Thank you for reading, replying. commenting and rebloging! Every bit of feedback means a lot to me ;w;

Word count: 6,392

[A03]

“Hanayo?!”

Nico sighs and fiddles with her eraser at the end of the club table. A notebook lies open in front of her and a mechanical pencil rests next to it. Eli’s exclamation causes her to blush a bit. Is it always this embarrassing telling your best friends who you have a crush on?

“That’s right Elichi~” Nozomi says in a sing song voice. “Our beloved Nicocchi is in love with cute little Hanayo-chan!”

“Harasho!” Eli’s eyes sparkle with excitement and she looks at Nico with the brightest smile, “I was a bit worried when you asked for us to meet in the club room, but I’m glad it’s for something as wonderful as this.”

Nico smiles awkwardly. “Thanks, I guess.” She shrugs and plays with her eraser a bit more.

“Do you plan on telling her?” Eli asks.

A dumb question from Eli, really. She’s got writing supplies in front of her- she’s asked both of them to meet with her and given Eli the final details of the conversation her and Nozomi had the night before. The question isn’t if Nico plans on telling her, but more like how she plans on telling her.

“Actually, that’s sort of why you’re here. Both of you.” Nico points towards Nozomi, who flashes a small grin.

“Nicocchi, is this your way of asking us to help you?” She teases.

Eli’s face is ecstatic for a moment, the idea already warming up to her. She looks to Nico with a unwavering and determined smile. Nico blushes a bit, not sure if she can answer Nozomi when Eli’s looking at her like that.

“I’d love nothing more than to help you out.” She says with confidence, “I’ll do whatever I can to help get your feelings to reach Hanayo.”

Despite Eli’s reassurance, Nico can see the tiny tinge of pink on Eli’s cheeks, as if she were a little embarrassed by her choice of words. She wishes this were a conversation on Line and not in person, that way she wouldn’t have to attempt to hide her blush. Or have to hear the words “your feelings” and “Hanayo” voiced out loud by her friends. It’s not like she’s embarrassed or anything, but hearing the words spoken out loud from other people makes it feel more real. More set in stone. The idea of telling Hanayo she loves her is nerve wracking, but making a plan to act on those feelings makes her heart race in a way that can only be described as horrifying. Or exciting. There’s actually several ways Nico could describe this feeling, if she really thinks about it.

This might be hard to get used to.

“Yes okay! Yeah, I need a bit of help. Not like, a huge amount, I just-” she pauses, looking to the paper and gesturing to it with both hands. “I want to write her this love letter, full of my feelings, but I don’t even know how to begin it.”

“Oooh, you’re gunna tell her through love letter huh? Good choice, Nicocchi. Very direct and to the point.” Nozomi nods her head, approving of Nico’s idea.

“Right? I thought so too.” Nico crosses her arms and smirks, satisfied that her idea is a hit. “My problem here is I can’t write a good enough letter.”

“How many times have you tried to write it?” Eli inquires.

“About three,” Nico replies instantly. Her friends stare at each other before looking back to her and she sighs dejectedly. “ Okay, seven. But none of them sound right! I can’t form the right words at all. Saying ‘I like you, please go out with me,’ is way too flat and unexciting, but whenever I try to elaborate I just get distracted and end up with disasters like this.”

She flips a couple pages back in her notebook and hands it to Eli. She takes it and glances over one of the letters Nico’s written. Her cheeks puff a little as she tries -and fails- to stifle a small giggle. She covers her mouth with one hand and Nico rolls her eyes.

“It’s fine. That’s one of the first drafts so of course it’s bad.”

“I-it’s not that.” Eli tries to reassure, “The letter just sounds nothing like you at all. It’s like you’re putting on an act.”

“Eh?! Seriously?! I didn’t think it was that bad...” Nico grumbles and Eli flips the page, reading over the next letter.

“Hmm.. this ones better, but you’re right about sounding too flat. I’d say it’s more like you’re really… stiff?” She looks to Nozomi with a questioning gaze and holds the notebook out to her.

Nozomi takes it with both hands and scans the letter. She puts a thoughtful hand to her chin and hums, furrowing her brows and examining the characters on the page. Nico can already hear something ridiculous coming from Nozomi’s mouth.

“Actually, It’s just really easy to tell how nervous you are while writing this.”

Surprised, Nico sits up.

“Really?” She asks.

“Mhmm. It’s not even about penmanship really, it’s more like your wording fumbles around a lot, ya know?” She flips the page back to the earlier letter and reads it, smirking a little before pushing the notebook away. “That first one on the other hand? Yikes.”

There it is. Nico frowns. “Gee, thanks.”

“So, how do we help Nico improve her letter then?” Eli says, bringing the two of them back to the main question once again.

The three of them fall into silence, pondering it. Nico’s hands go back to fiddling with her eraser and Eli takes the notebook, scanning through the different letters Nico’s already written. Nozomi looks to the ceiling with a small frown as she considers different options. A phone vibrates and each of the girls check their pockets to determine who’s phone received the message.

Nico’s eyes light up a little when she notices an e-mail notification from Hanayo. She opens it with glee and Eli and Nozomi peer over curiously, wanting to know who the sender is. The contents are an image file and a caption that says “Don’t tell Maki-chan I sent this!!”

“Oho? What’s this Hanayo-chan is sending you?” Nozomi quips, leaning closer to get a better look.

“Isn’t it a bit rude to peek at messages that aren’t yours?” Nico jabs, but does nothing to move away from Nozomi or Eli’s curious gazes.

Nozomi laughs and says nothing to follow up. Nico taps on the thumbnail and the photo takes a moment before it loads. Nico snorts while Eli and Nozomi chuckle as a photo of a flustered Maki and beaming Rin take up the screen. Both have kitty whiskers drawn on in some sort of pen, and judging by the slight blur of the photo, Hanayo must have moved her camera out of the way fast so Maki didn’t notice. Nico’s phone vibrates and she exits from the photo to read the next message.

In quotations, the text reads “We’re a couple of cutie panthers!” followed by a dash and Rin’s name. Nico laughs loudly while the other two giggle with her. When she recovers from her laughter she opens up a blank reply and begins to type.

“Cute, but if I remember right, there’s three cutie panthers, ain’t there?”

Nico hits send with another laugh.

“Ahh, lunch with those three looks like it’s fun. We should all eat together sometime.” Nozomi comments with a grin.

“We can always do that tomorrow.” Eli suggests.

Another vibration comes from Nico’s phone and she ignores the other two as they begin making plans for tomorrow's lunch. The reply from Hanayo is only a photo this time, and Nico opens it curiously. When the picture loads her throat closes and her hold on the phone tightens. Hanayo’s holding a shy peace sign up with one hand. Her glasses are on and decorating either sides of her face are two whiskers that match Maki and Rin’s from the previous photo. There’s a slight tinge of pink to her cheeks, as well as a couple grains of rice lingering in the corner of her mouth.

Nico feels like she could die happy this very moment from the surprise photo. Nozomi and Eli have stopped talking and are looking at Nico with concern on their faces. Her phone vibrates again and Nico’s brought back to reality, backing away from the photo and reading the follow up text.

“Rin-chan had to take the photo, but we’re all here!! (´･ω･`)”

‘Thank you Rin.’ Nico thinks, tempted to raise her fist in the air.

“What was the last picture Hanayo sent?” asks Nozomi as she leans closer, wanting to see the image. Nico almost chucks the phone across the room in her surprise.

“I-It was Hanayo,” She says, going back to the picture to show the other two.

“Is this a sign you and I are being replaced by Rin and Hanayo for the next performance of Cutie Panther?” Eli jests, a warm smile on her face. “We can swap subunits for the day. Nico, you can be with Printemps while I join Lily White.”

Eli’s the only one who laughs at her joke. Nozomi and Nico make eye contact, knowing that if a switch like that actually happened, Eli would probably be in Printemps and Nico would join Lily White. They let Eli have her fun and Nozomi watches as Nico smiles fondly at the photo on her screen.

“Nicocchi really loves Hanayo-chan, doesn’t she.” It’s not said as a question, nor teasingly. It’s a genuine observation. Nico looks to her friend and notices the warm, fond smile she has. The kind Nozomi wears when Eli walks into the room.

“I-” She pauses, thinking over her own feelings. She knows talking with Nozomi last night cleared up her uncertain feelings, but they’re still so new and unfamiliar, she feels a little weird saying them outloud. “I really, really do.”

Nozomi and Eli settle back down in their chairs. Nozomi looks at Eli, silently communicating something that the blonde seems to understand perfectly. Her green eyed gaze looks back to Nico and her smile turns cheeky as she asks a question.

“Why?”

Flabbergasted, Nico almost glares at her.

“What the heck do you mean ‘why’?!” She almost throws her arms up. “I don’t know why I love Hanayo! It just sort of happened.”

Nozomi hums.

“Love has a weird way of doing that.” She says with a nod. “But what do you love about her?”

Nico hesitates. There’s a lot she could say for this question. It isn’t just a single thing, more like a compilation of little things.

“I love a lot of things about her,” She eventually begins, “I love her personality. Even if she is a little timid and doesn’t have a lot of confidence in herself some times, if she’s determined, she’ll do her best to succeed. She’s cute- not just her looks, but everything about her is cute. She’s great to talk with, she always makes sure you know she’s listening to you and she’s serious about idols. She may even rival me when it comes to how much we know about the business.”

Nico thinks about her junior and a small smile forms on her face. All the time spent with her, conversations they’ve shared, every little detail that brought them closer together and strengthened their friendship were also little things that helped Nico fall for her in the first place. She misses the gentle smiles both Eli and Nozomi stare at her with. She speaks in a soft tone as she continues.

“I love the way she laughs. The way her eyes light up when she see’s something she loves, or hears something good about muse. I love how she shouts “BIG NEWS!” when there’s been an update on Love Live, or anything in general really. I love all of these and I love all of her.”

Eli sniffles a bit and Nico looks over to see her wiping away a tear.

“Eh?! Are you crying?!” She’s a mixture of embarrassed and proud of the little detail and Eli doesn’t try to deny it.

“I-I don’t mean to! It’s just so sweet.” She sighs a bit and smiles, “It’s nice, seeing how happy loving her makes you.”

Nico almost buries her face into her hands to hide her embarrassment.

“It really is, isn’t it?” Nozomi giggles and looks at Eli, “and you wrote all of it down, right Elichi?”

Eli holds up a piece of paper Nico hadn’t noticed and winks.

“Every word.”

Nico almost screams.

“You wrote it all down?! What the hell?!” She stands up flustered, reaching over to Eli and grabbing the paper. She scans Eli’s point form notes of the confession and she feels her face heat up.

“It’s to help you, Nicocchi!” Nozomi laughs, “If you can say all of this outloud, you shouldn’t have a problem with putting it on paper, right?”

Nico swears she can hear a heavenly chorus. There’s a golden glow surrounding Nozomi, making her think nothing less of an angelic angel;maybe even a beautiful goddess like Muse's namesakes. Nico reaches over and grabs Nozomi’s hands into her own, looking her dead in the face and saying her thoughts proudly.

“You’re a genius and if I could, I’d kiss you right now.”

Nozomi’s eyes practically light up and Eli coughs. Nico laughs.

“Geeze Eli, I’m kidding. Besides, I should be kissing you since you wrote down all of this great content that just came out of my mouth. I won’t, because that’d be weird, but I’d kiss you if it wasn’t.”

Eli’s cheeks redden and Nozomi lets out a small, disappointed hum (Nico wants to assume it’s because she joked about kissing Eli instead of her, but she knows Nozomi’s probably disappointed there’s no kissing at all. ) She rereads everything Eli’s written down carefully before reaching into her bag and pulling out a piece of pink stationery. Lining the outsides of it is a pattern of a bunny silhouette and tiny pink hearts. It’s Nico’s favourite, and the perfect kind to use for something as important as this.

“Okay. I think I have the right idea.” Nico grabs her pencil and without any more hesitation, she begins to write on the dotted lines of the paper.

Nozomi and Eli busy themselves with light conversation, not wanting to distract Nico from her writing. Lunch is nearing its end and the girl is determined to finish this before heading back to class. She needs to finish it now. It has to be slipped into Hanayo’s shoe locker before practice starts. She’s glad that no matter the speed of her writing, it’s always perfectly legible- and quite adorable, if she’s truly honest. Practicing to have the cutest writing in grade 3 had perfect, lasting impressions.

By the time she reaches the end of the letter, she hesitates. It’s time for her to write her name. She swallows, hard, her pencil hovering above the bottom of the paper. This would seal the letters fate. She could leave it anonymous, leave Hanayo guessing who left the letter in her locker and have her ponder endlessly until she either figured it out or Nico decided enough was enough- but then what would be the point of the love letter? Nico didn’t want to make this anonymous. She wanted Hanayo to know her true feelings, and know that it’s her who has been nothing but blessed with falling in love with her.

That thought alone makes Nico sign the bottom of the paper, and for an added touch she doodles a small heart and a tiny “nico nico nii” next to it.

“Nico, I’m sorry but lunch is almost over,” Eli’s voice has a hint of worry to it, but Nico looks up with a triumphant smile.

“Guess that means I made the deadline~” She grins, holding the letter out to her. “Well, tell me what you think.”

Eli gingerly takes it from her, reading it. She nods at some parts and Nico watches as her smile grows wider. She hands the paper off to Nozomi when she’s finished reading and turns to Nico, giving her a wink and a thumbs up.

“It’s perfect!”

Nico silently pats herself on the back and Nozomi laughs.

“It is. It’s very much like Nicocchi too. I’d expect nothing less than this.” Nozomi hands the paper back to Nico and grins. “Looks like the hardest part is over.”

Nico sighs in relief.

“Thank god. Now all I have to do is put it in her locker before practice.”

Eli wants to add a thought in, but the bell signalling the end of lunch rings and her thoughts are pushed to the side. Nico quickly folds the letter up and puts it into a matching envelope. She doesn’t seal it as she slips it into her bag and she follows Nozomi and Eli as they stand from their chairs.

“Good luck with your letter, Nico.” Eli says with a smile.

“Thanks,” Nico returns the smile, “I’ll need it.”

The three of them laugh as they exit the club room and head towards their classrooms for the second half of the school day.

Fifteen minutes left in class and Nico’s having a small breakdown. Her English work means nothing right now, the most important moment of the day is approaching and Nico isn’t so sure she’s as prepared as she thought she was. She’s never felt so anxious before; not even before her very first live at Otonokizaka.

She reaches into her bag and pulls out the envelope. There’s no harm in being certain your love letter is perfect, right? And it wasn’t like she had the chance to proofread it herself during lunch- she was a little behind by the time she was able to begin writing it. Her eyes carefully scan the letter over and over again, double and triple checking that everything is written perfectly and that her mess of words actually got her feelings across. She fails to notice the girls around her packing up their books and getting ready to leave class. The teacher calls for everyones attention, but Nico ignores it as she checks over the letter one last time.

The end of day bell rings and Nico’s brought back to reality. Startled by the chime, Nico hurriedly gathers all her things. She quickly seals up the envelope, not giving it a second thought as she turns it around and scribbles the kanji for Hanayo’s name. She’s determined to get it downstairs and inside of Hanayo’s shoe locker, while still being on time to make it to the club room with the rest of the gang. She haphazardously throws all her books and loose papers into her school bag before making a mad dash out of the class.

On her way down the hall, she notices Eli give her a quick thumbs up. She returns it with a small smile as she excuses herself past a couple of girls, weaving her way by them and dashing down the stairs. She clutches the cute stationary in her hands like her life depends on it, not wanting to lose the important letter. The letter that contains her most heartfelt feelings towards her junior.

By the time Nico makes it to the bottom, her breathing is incredibly heavy. A few students look her way, worried about her current state, but she waves them off and tells them she’s fine. She moves as quickly as any winded girl can towards the entrance and the shoe lockers, heading straight for the row with Hanayo’s. She scans each number on the shoe compartments with careful eyes, not wanting to mistake the numbers.

“216…. 220... “ she mumbles to herself as she glances at the numbers. “Ah! 223!”

She swallows the nervous lump in her throat as she reaches the exact locker she needs to be at. With shaky hands, she pulls the door open carefully. Inside it, Hanayo’s outdoor shoes sit on the bottom level, neatly placed next to one another and not a single detail out of place. It’s very cute; very much like her. Nico shakes her head before placing it down on the pair of brown shoes before shutting the locker tightly. She glances up to the clock and sighs in relief when it reads only a few minutes have gone by since she made her mad dash down the stairs.

“Now.. to climb back up them.”

Nico groans as she makes her way back inside the building and towards the closest staircase.

“Great practice today, everybody!” Umi calls out to the group. “We’ve all been working really hard on our steps lately, so I think tomorrow we should all take the time to memorize the new lyrics. Does that work for everyone?”

A chorus of “Yes!” comes from the group. Umi smiles and dismisses everyone for the day. Nico immediately goes for her towel, picking it up and wiping the sweat off her brow. There’s a nudge from her right side and she glances to see Nozomi peeking at her with curious eyes. Nico frowns.

“What?” She asks in a flat tone.

“Oh nothing~. Just wondering how dropping off the ‘you know what’ went.” She gives Nico a tiny wink and Nico immediately leans in to shush her.

“S-shut up! It went fine! What else did you think would happen?!”

Nozomi laughs and shrugs.

“Dunno.” She turns her gaze over to their juniors to see Hanayo talking with Maki about today's practice. Nico’s gaze follows hers and her eyes soften. Her heart jumps in her chest and she reaches up, absentmindedly clenching it.

“Don’t worry Nicocchi.” Nozomi says quietly. “I’m sure your feelings will reach her through that letter. You worked hard on it during lunch time, after all.”

Nico nods. She wishes there’s more she could do, but it’s all up to her letter now. She hopes that maybe Hanayo will text her later after reading it, or will ask to meet up to give her a proper response. There’s so many ways this could go, the thought of having to wait to find out stresses Nico out just a bit more than the idea of confessing to the girl face to face.

“Hey Nicocchi,” Nozomi says in a whisper close to her ear. “If we hurry up, maybe we can watch Hanayo-chan get the letter from her locker.”

Nico’s head whips to the side, her pigtails smacking Nozomi in the face. The idea pieces itself together inside her brain and she shouts.

“WELL, WHAT ARE WE WAITING FOR?!” She grabs Nozomi by the wrist and drags her to the door, calling back to their third comrade, “ELI, HURRY UP! YOU’RE WALKING WITH US, RIGHT?!”

Nozomi’s laughing as Nico pulls her through the door to the stairs and Eli sighs, saying goodbye to the girls and quickly following the two of them off the rooftop.

“Why exactly do we need to hurry?!” She asks, looking to Nozomi for an answer.

“Nicocchi wants to watch the magical moment happen.” Nozomi explains with a cheeky grin, “I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t curious as well.”

Nico’s face feels warm but she says nothing as they reach the club room. They grab their uniforms and it doesn’t take the three of them long to change out of their practice clothes and back into them. Nico doesn’t bother tying her ribbon up nicely as she hoists her bag over her shoulder and waits impatiently by the door.

Once the other two have finished, Nico leads the way down the halls and to the school’s entrance. She ignores the increasing butterflies that build up more and more in the pit of her stomach. Thanks to the adrenaline from practice, it feels like nothing more than a light tickle, but she knows the moment Hanayo opens that locker door she’ll be feeling the full force of her anxieties.

The three of them settle in the perfect spot in the aisle next to the one with Hanayo’s locker. Nico stands between both of her friends, biting her lip and pushing all the thoughts that seem too hopeful out of her mind. She reminds herself that it’s a love letter, Hanayo might not read it until she gets home and even then, there’s no telling what her reaction might be. Maybe Nico will be rejected. Maybe Hanayo won’t want to be anything more than friends. Maybe she’s already dating somebody else Nico doesn’t know of (a silly thought, she realizes, because Hanayo keeps no secrets from muse, and they both know being an idol and having a lover has its problems .)

Voices can be heard in the distance and Nico can feel both Nozomi and Eli shifting closer to her in their excitement. Eli’s hand is comfortingly resting on her shoulder while Nozomi has linked her arm with Nico’s. This is it. The moment of truth is right before their eyes. Nico swallows nervously.

Rin and Hanayo step into the school entrance, discussing the English homework they’d been given. The older girls are so quiet that not a breath can be heard from any of them. Rin’s voice becomes a bit distant as she heads to her locker all the way at the end of the row, near the exit. Nico shuts her eyes tightly and the sound of Hanayo opening the door to her own echos in her ears.

“Eh?” Hanayo startles. “H-huh.. Whats this..?!”

Nico’s lips form a thin line and her face heats up even more. She’s hyper aware of the way Nozomi and Eli tense up with her; how all three of them stand as still as possible. She can hear the way Hanayo turns over the envelope and how she reads out her own name to herself. Nico shuts her eyes tightly and waits as the moment reaches its peak: would Hanayo open the envelope now? Or later?

“R-Rin-chan!” Hanayo calls out immediately, “R-Rin-chan!!!”

“Kayo-chin?!” Rin shouts back, followed by fast approaching footsteps. “What’s up!? What’s wro- OH MY GOD WHAT IS THAT?!”

“I-I DON’T KNOW!” Hanayo cries, “IT’S ADDRESSED TO ME!”

“KAYO-CHIN, IS THAT A LOVE LETTER?!”

“I DON’T KNOW!”

It’s almost comical, the reactions the two of them have. If Nico weren’t so nervous, she’d be laughing about this. She feels the weight of Eli’s hand lift off her shoulder and her eyes glance to her, watching her cover her mouth and shake a little bit. She nudges Eli playfully and the girl only tries to stifle her laughs more.

“Geeze, you two are loud. What’s gotten you both so riled up?” A voice comes from the hall.

“MAKI-CHAN, IT’S BIG NEWS!” Rin exclaims, stealing the popular catchphrase from Hanayo, “KAYO-CHIN FOUND A LETTER IN HER LOCKER!”

“Eh?!” Maki’s voice seems surprised and the third years listen as her footsteps move closer to the other three.

Nico wishes she could see Hanayo’s expression right now.

“Koizumi Hanayo,” Maki reads the front of the envelope.”W-well, it’s certainly a letter for you alright.”

“Right?! This is amazing! Kayo-chin, you gotta open it!” Rin’s voice is bubbly and you can tell she’s got a slight bounce in her posture as she speaks.

“N-now?! B-but.. But I can’t.. it.. it wouldn’t be right to read it right now, would it?!”

“Rin, you can’t just ask Hanayo to read something personal right here in front of us.” Maki scolds.

Nico silently thanks Maki for stopping everyone from seeing the confession. It isn’t that it’s badly written- Nico poured her whole heart into it. It’s the highest quality love letter around. But, as great as it is, it's meant for one person’s eyes only (A silly thought, she realizes, when she remembers she had Eli and Nozomi proof read it.)

“Aww, but the flaps already opening up, see?”

‘Stupid cheap stationery.’ Nico almost grumbles.

“Eh?! Oh no! It is!” Hanayo sounds distressed. “I-I’ll just reseal it-”

Her voice cuts off and there’s an awkward silence from the other side of the shoe lockers. Nico glances to Eli and Nozomi in confusion and the both of them wear an expression that mirrors her own. Suddenly, Rin shouts so loudly that Nico’s positive all the clubs outside can hear her.

“IT’S EMPTY?!?!”

Nico’s eyes widen. Nozomi and Eli look at her bewildered as she starts quietly rummaging through her bag. She hands various textbooks and notebooks for both Eli and Nozomi to hold as she digs deeper into the bag. Sure enough, as she pulls out her English notebook, a corner of paper that matches the envelope the first years currently have peeks out at her. Nico tugs at it carefully and clutches it with a shaky hand as her face goes pale and her heart sinks. Staring her right in the face is her confession. The single most important detail of the love letter.

Nico wants to cry.

“Who would just put an empty envelope in your locker?!” Rin asks, her voice a mixture of offended and astonished.

“An idiot.” Maki says, and you can tell she wears an unhappy expression. “Don’t pay any mind to it Hanayo. This is a low prank.”

“You think it’s a prank?!” Rin’s horrified when she asks, not wanting to assume the worst like Maki has.

“W-well, what else could it be?!” Maki retorts. Nico can picture her arms are crossed and her fingers playing with her hair.

Hanayo hasn’t said anything in what feels like forever. Nico’s heart sinks imagining how hurt she must feel. There’s a nudge from the side Eli’s on and she glances to her taller friend. She points down the row and Nico turns just in time to see Nozomi walking out of their aisle and into the first years.

She almost yells.

“I was wondering what the commotion was~” Nozomi’s voice jumps in and Nico buries her face into her hands.

“Nozomi-chan!” Rin calls out to her. “Hey hey, come look at this!”

Eli and Nico listen as Nozomi’s footsteps get closer to the other girls.

“Hm? A love letter?!” She exclaims curiously.

“That’s what we thought too but it’s empty!!” Rin definitely sounds angry about this now, no thanks to Maki pointing out it could be a prank.

“Ahh… isn’t that something.” Nozomi responds.

“Uhm,” It’s the first time Hanayo’s spoken since they realized it was empty and Nico’s stomach tightens. “N-Nozomi-chan, you don’t… you don’t think this is a prank, do you?”

Her voice sounds hurt. Nico wants to punch herself in the face. Or smash it repeatedly into the lockers. How could she be so stupid and forget the actual letter? The cute envelope is nothing without the letter inside of it. This is a disaster.

“Mmm, well, it does seem that way doesn’t it?” Nozomi starts, “But Otonokizaka is full of sweet girls. I don’t think any of them would intentionally put an envelope in your locker without the letter.”

There’s a small silence from the other side.

“That’s true,” Hanayo says quietly. “Everyone I talk with here is so kind towards me.”

“Mhm. Plus, the school loves muse, don’t they?” Nozomi adds. “I think whoever gave this to you is just a little clumsy. They’re probably going to open their bag later and find the letter and feel pretty silly for forgetting to put it in the envelope.”

Nico can hear the smirk in Nozomi’s voice and she doesn’t know whether she should feel grateful or upset by the way she’s saving the situation.

Rin giggles a bit.

“That sounds kind of sad. Now I feel kinda bad for whoever gave Kayo-chin the empty envelope.”

“I’m not convinced.” Maki states, still unimpressed by the situation. “But it’s not really my concern. Hanayo, what do you think?”

There’s a moment of pause before the timid girl speaks.

“I think Nozomi-chan might be right.” She says, “I really don’t think anyone would do a prank like this. N-not here, anyway, but uhm,” She pauses a bit, as if thinking of what to say next. “W-well, I am hoping that they aren’t too sad about it later.”

Nico’s heart soars. This girl is just too good. Way too good. Even now, after her confession letter failed, she still hopes that whoever attempted to confess to her isn’t feeling down about failing. Nico wishes she could tell her right now. She wishes she could pull the courage to run into the other row and shout her feelings to the world, but as she gazes at the piece of paper clutched in her hand, she’s reminded of how she got into the situation in the first place. She holds the letter closer to her and almost sighs.

“Hey, didn’t you leave earlier with Nico-chan?” Rin suddenly says.

Nico tenses again.

“Ah, I did.” Nozomi replies with a laugh, “Nicocchi was so eager to leave, but thanks to that I forgot one of my books in class, so I came back to get it.”

‘Nice save, Nozomi.’ Nico thinks, with a mental thumbs up.

“Oh! Well, tell her and Eli-chan we said hi then!” Rin laughs, “Maki-chan, Kayo-chin, are we all ready to go?”

“Just let me grab my outdoor shoes.” Maki says.

The first years say goodbye to Nozomi, and Nico and Eli stay standing where they are until they hear the sounds of their footsteps walking out the entrance. Nico groans loudly and puts her head in her hands, the letter crumpling into her face as she accepts the fact that this confession is her biggest failure to date.

“What a mess.” She sighs. “I can’t believe I didn’t notice the letter wasn’t in the envelope.”

“How did that end up happening?” Eli asks in surprise. “Nozomi and I watched you fold and put it in the envelope at lunch!”

“I know! I know but-” Nico removes her hands from her face and looks up to the blonde, a tiny blush on her face. “I wanted to go over it one last time and the end of class to make sure it was absolutely perfect, and then class was dismissed and I sort of panicked and sealed the envelope and shoved my books into my bag.”

“Nicocchi needs to be a little careful with her notes then.” Nozomi says with a laugh as she returns, “Well, to be fair I may have seen this coming.”

Nico looks at Nozomi with squinted eyes.

“You KNEW it wouldn’t work!? And you let me embarrass myself?!” Nico exclaims, pushing herself onto her feet and glaring up at Nozomi.

“It was the cards, Nicocchi!” Nozomi laughs, “I may have done a reading for you before practice, and it wasn’t exactly the best outcome it could be but-”

“Wasn’t exactly?! Nozomi, I listened to Hanayo find an empty envelope from me in her locker! I think it’s far from the best outcome!” Nico’s voice is loud and Eli reaches out and pats Nico’s head reassuringly.

“There there Nico, it’s not like you won’t have other opportunities to tell Hanayo how you feel.” She reassures. “Nozomi, did your cards imply something else would happen if the letter failed?”

Nozomi smiles and shrugs. Nico feels a strong urge to crumple the letter in her hands into a small ball and throw it at the girl’s dimpled face. Eli sighs.

“Well, I guess we’ll just have to wait and see.” She rubs the back of her neck and adjusts her bag on her shoulder. “Nico, would you like to join us for parfaits?”

“Thanks, but I think I’m going to go home for the day.” The shorter girl grumbles, folding the letter up and slipping it back into her bag.

“Hey, look on the bright side of this,” Eli attempts to bring up her mood by throwing in a positive thought, “With the letter not working, you can always try something more direct.”

“Mhm!” Nozomi says, looping her arm with one of Nico’s and adding onto Eli’s point. “Maybe you can invite her over to your place and watch some of those Lives you’ve got on dvd. We all know how you and Hanayo-chan love them.”

“Yeah, maybe.”

“And maybe you’ll be able to read out the letter to her instea-” Nico cuts Nozomi off by elbowing her in the side. Nozomi laughs through the light pain as Nico walks away from her.

“Nozomi,” Eli warns and Nozomi’s laughter ends, replaced with a teasing smile. Eli turns her attention to Nico and steps forward to walk with her. “In all honestly though, it does give you a lot more time to work on confessing to her again. A lot of people fail to get their first confession across, and even I had my own struggles with confessing to Nozomi.

“Wait, really?” Nico’s a bit intrigued. She knew the story of how Eli confessed, but she hadn’t known Eli struggled to tell her girlfriend her feelings.

“Of course! It took me months before I could even ask Nozomi out, and I think I was finally able to tell her on the fourth attempt.”

Nozomi says a little “aw” as she catches up with the two of them, walking on Nico’s other side. Eli laughs as her cheeks tint red again and Nico’s attention goes from Eli to the open space in front of them. Knowing that even Eli had a tough time telling Nozomi her feelings gives her a bit of hope, and while Eli probably didn’t fail as badly with her confessions as Nico did today, she knows Eli has the right idea.

“Thanks Eli.” Nico says sincerely.

Eli smiles.

“So, does this mean you’re not giving up on telling Hanayo-chan you love her?” Nozomi asks.

Nico nods.

“Of course it does! It’d be dumb to give up in the first place, especially after today,” Nico starts, “If Eli didn’t give up on telling you her feelings, then there’s no way I can give up on telling Hanayo! I’ll tell her exactly how I feel no matter what!”

“Harasho!” Eli cheers, “That’s the spirit, Nico!”

“We’ll be rooting for you, Nicocchi! Do your best!” Nozomi adds.

Today really didn’t go as planned for Nico, but with nothing but determination and the promise of getting her feelings across to Hanayo, Nico’s confident the next attempt will be better.

#Nicopana #Nico Yazawa #Hanayo Koizumi #Nozomi Toujou #Eli Ayase #Myfic #@ Nico sorry #I hope you guys like this!! it took me a lot longer than i thought OTL #Ill do my best to give it regular updates tho!!

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