Opening her locker, Kagami pulled out her indoor shoes. She then heard something hit the floor. Looking down, she saw a thin envelope. Picking it up, she flipped it round and saw it was addressed to her. Her mind raced. Is this what I think it is?
Her thoughts were interrupted by the chime of the bell. Stuffing the envelope in her bag, she changed shoes and hurried to her classroom.
Throughout the day, her thoughts kept switching to what was in her bag, making it hard to concentrate in class. At lunchtime, she struggled to keep focused on the conversations with the others, prompting a few quizzical glances from Tsukasa.
After school, the tsundere told Tsukasa she'd be home a little later than normal, then hurried to find somewhere quiet.
Hiding by the staircase, thankfully devoid of students, she pulled the envelope out of her bag and opened it. The letter inside was short (and messy), asking her to go to the rooftop after school.
Stuffing it back in her bag, she hurried up the stairs, hoping she wasn't too late. Reaching the door to the roof, she paused briefly to catch her breath, then stepped outside.
The first thing that caught her eye was a head of blue hair. "Konata?" she asked, puzzled. The person turned round, confirming her identity.
"Hi Kagamin." Kagami then pulled out the letter.
"Were you the one who gave me this?"
Nodding, Konata started walking over to her friend. "Come on Kagamin, you mean you don't recognize my handwriting?"
"Okaaaayy. Why did you want to meet me up here? You're not going to confess to me, are you?" she said jokingly.
Konata stopped in front of her. Clenching her fists, she said, "That's exactly why I called you here." Kagami stopped smiling. "Kagami, I know that you think I'm all about cracking jokes and being an idiot most of the time, but I need you to believe me when I say I am dead serious about what I'm about to say."
Kagami was quite taken aback by the seriousness in Konata's voice. She was hardly ever this serious. "Konata. What are you trying to say?" she asked, confused.
Grasping her friend's hands, the otaku looked up into the taller girl's eyes. "Kagami Hiiragi, will you allow me to be your girlfriend?"
"..." That single question rendered Kagami speechless. "I, uh..." She struggled to find words. "Konata, I... I'm sorry, this is just a lot to take on."
Konata lowered her gaze. "Yeah. I should have known you wouldn't be able to answer me straight away." She then reached into her bag and pulled out a small box.
"What's that?"
Konata held the box out. "Could you... hold onto this please? You don't have to open it, not until you're ready to give me your answer."
Kagami took the box. Konata then walked past her. "Konata? Where are you going?"
"It's obvious you need some time to think, so I'm leaving you to it. I'll be waiting, Kagamin." Without a second look, she headed inside, leaving her friend alone.
Looking at the box, Kagami muttered, "My girlfriend, huh?"
Later that evening...
Kagami sat at her desk, hard at work with her homework. Muttering facts and whatnot to herself, she reached for her eraser when her hand bumped the box she had been given. I'll be waiting, Kagamin.
"So she has feelings for me, huh?" she whispered. "How do I answer her? Do I even have the same feelings?" Her thoughts were interrupted by a knock at her door.
"Yeah?" she called, quickly sticking the box inside her desk. Her father stuck his head in the room.
"Dinner's almost ready, Kagami." he said.
"Oh, okay." Pulling his head back, Kagami called out. "Say, Dad? Do you have a minute?"
"Sure." Tadao entered the room, wondering what his daughter had on her mind.
"Uh, have a seat." Kagami said, gesturing towards her bed, her dad complying.
"What's up, Kagami?" he asked.
"Uh, how do I say this?" the tsundere started. Picking her words, she began. "This may sound strange, but if a person was confessed to by another, and they weren't sure about how they felt, what should they do?"
Her father looked at her quizzically. "What's brought this on?"
Kagami averted her gaze. "Well... I guess you could say I inadvertently overheard someone being confessed to earlier today, and they were a bit confused."
Tadao smiled. "That "someone being confessed to" wouldn't be you, would it?"
"What? No!" Kagami blushed furiously.
Still smiling, her dad then said, "Well, there's no really straight answer for that, Kagami. The only advice I could really give that person would be 'go with your gut, but listen to your heart as well'. It ultimately comes down to this question: Do I like this person enough that I'd want to spend the rest of my life with them?"
"That's... pretty deep." Kagami said.
"Well, how else do you think your mother and I wound up where we are today?" Before Kagami could respond to this, there was another knock at the door.
"Hey, dinner's ready now." Inori said.
"Well, we'd better get going before your mother gets upset."
"Yeah. Uh... thanks for the advice."
"What are fathers for?" Leaving the room, they joined the rest of the family. After dinner, Kagami returned to her homework, but found it difficult to concentrate. Her dad's words echoed in her mind. Do I like this person enough that I'd want to spend the rest of my life with them?
"That's a good question. Do I like her enough? Do I even like her at all?" Well, I do enjoy the time we spend together. While she can be a pain at times, she does have her sweet moments.
Looking at her drawer, she opened it and retrieved the box. You don't have to open it, not until you're ready to give me your answer.
"My answer, huh? Guess it'll be a while before I open this then." Placing it back, she forcefully switched her thoughts to her homework.
Over the next few weeks, things between the girls proceeded as normal. Konata never brought up the love thing again, and Kagami found herself pondering her feelings.
This continued for some time, until one night when Konata showed up at the Hiiragi household. "Kagami, it's Kona-chan." Miki called. Kagami came rather quickly at that call. Leaving the two alone, Miki headed back inside.
"What's up?" Kagami asked.
Konata held her head down. "Kagami? Can you just forget I ever said anything?"
This surprised Kagami. "What's wrong?" Gently tilting her friend's head up, she saw that she was on the verge of tears. "Konata, what's wrong?"
Konata then batted Kagami's hand away. "Just forget it!" she exclaimed before running away.
"Konata!" She could only watch as her friend disappeared. "Konata..."
The next day, Konata was absent from school. This worried Kagami. She knew that Konata normally tried taking days off, but something felt a bit off today. Have I upset her by making her wait so long?
Resolving to see the otaku after school, she proceeded through her day as usual. As soon as the bell rang, she hurried to change her shoes. Before heading to Konata's, she quickly stopped by her home first. Arriving at the Izumi residence, Kagami rang the bell.
"Coming." a voice rang out. Hearing approaching footsteps, the door opened to reveal Yutaka. "Hiiragi-san. Hello."
"Hi Kobayakawa-san. Is Konata in?"
Yutaka looked away. "Yes, but I think something's wrong with her. She hasn't been her usual self, and I'm a bit worried." the junior explained.
Kagami's heart filled with guilt. "I think I may have been the cause, but I'm gonna try and set things right." she said.
Yutaka stepped aside. "Well, come on in. She's in her room."
"Thanks." Removing her shoes, the tsundere made her way to Konata's room. Taking a deep breath, she knocked the door. "Hey, Konata? It's me. Can I come in?" There was no response.
Grasping the door handle, she called "I'm coming in." The first thing that caught her eye was the lump on the bed. Walking over, she tentatively reached out. As she placed her hand on the blanket, the lump curled up.
"..." Dropping her gaze, she drew her hand back. "Konata. I'm sorry. I'm sorry if I hurt you by not responding to you sooner. I'm sorry for taking so long. I didn't mean to hurt you or anything. I just needed time to get my feelings sorted out. I'm sure you understand that you can't rush things like this."
As she finished speaking, there was movement on the bed. Konata slowly unwrapped herself from her blanket and sat up, but did not look at Kagami. "Do you know how long I was waiting?" she asked quietly. Her shoulders shook.
"Well, I'm ready to give you my answer now." Konata's head perked up and she looked back. Kagami was smiling and holding her arm up. On her wrist was a wrist band. Konata's eyes widened.
"Kagami..."
Reaching out, Kagami pulled her friend into a hug. "Konata. Of course I will allow it. I will allow you to be my girlfriend." she said, holding the smaller girl close.
The otaku's eyes filled with tears as she hugged her friend back. "I had all but given up hope... Thank you Kagami." The two stayed like this for a good while.
THE END