Author's Note: For CellieKitty :)

Just Say You Like Me!

If you like me, then say you like me
It's time to fall into my arms
'Cause I've been waiting for too long
-Say You Like Me by We the Kings

"Haku dearest, I love you!" cried Teto, bursting into the restaurant with her eyes squeezed shut and arms open in preparation for the moment her hurdling body crashed into Haku's in order to embrace the girl in a hug, all the while trusting her heart to lead her straight to the object of her affections. "Tell me you love me, too!"

"T-Teto!" exclaimed Haku in the opposite direction to that which Teto had been heading. At that, Teto allowed her body to whirl around and properly race toward Haku. However, the source of the voice changed once more as Haku squealed, "Please open your eyes! You'll hurt someone!"

Teto changed directions again to head toward where she'd last located Haku's voice, and she cried, "Never fear, my love! If someone is hurt, I will shelter you from the pain!"

"That doesn't make me feel any better!" cried Haku, dodging Teto once more by ducking behind another table. As the girl continued hiding from Teto as the girl with twin drills called out more and more absurd phrases, Neru, seated at a table with Miku, rolled her eyes at the two, amused despite her desire not to be.

"Hey, Teto, stop teasing Haku!" called Miku, smirking as she leaned back in her chair. "She's trying to work. You can get her later."

Still, neither Neru nor Miku lifted a finger as Teto called back, "But I can't withhold this feeling in my pounding chest! I simply must embrace my beloved Haku!"

"Miku, Neru, please help me!" wailed Haku, her eyes growing teary as she clutched her empty tray tightly against her body and dodged behind yet another table. Miku and Neru exchanged a glance, shrugged, and stood up to offer their friend some assistance.

It was their final summer vacation of high school, so the four girls had decided to take a trip to the beach. However, since their budget was rather tight, they'd all picked up shifts at a beachside shack. Haku and Neru had been the only two booked for the early morning shift, so the two had left early in the morning. Miku had left upon awaking to visit the two, leaving Teto still sleeping in their room. In the end, Neru was slacking, as Miku had expected, and Haku was busily hustling between the guests despite her natural shyness, which was a trait Teto enjoyed exploiting. The redhead's favourite activity was teasing her friends, with Haku being at the top for her 'adorable' reactions, so events such as these weren't uncommon to the girls and had even become a source of appeal for the shack as many guests were amused by the interactions between Teto and Haku.

"Here, get to work," Neru ordered, shoving her apron to Teto, who was already prepared for the beach and her work seeing as she wore her one-piece swimsuit.

"Yes, sir!" agreed Teto eagerly with a huge grin, beginning to tie the apron around her waist as Neru glanced over to where Miku was comforting a teary Haku. Good. She wouldn't get in trouble for tricking Teto into taking her shift if Miku was preoccupied. "I'll do my best!"

"Good, good," agreed Neru, keeping an eye on Miku as she patted Teto on the back, causing the childish girl to grin proudly. "Knock em dead, Teto. I'll be down at the beach if you need me."

"Understood, captain!" saluted Teto before rushing to a table and instantly requesting, "How may I be of service to you today, good sir?"

Neru rolled her eyes then and prepared to head to the beach. However, she was stopped by an ice-cold glare that sent chills down her back without her even seeing it, so she froze stiff at Miku's voice ordering, "You're still working. Haku and I are going to the beach."

Neru grimaced and then sighed. So close. But she knew there was no use arguing with Miku, so she merely breathed, "Fine, fine. Don't give me a break this one time or anything, stupid."

"What did you say, darling Neru?" Miku asked in that sickly sweet voice that warned Neru that she'd better be prepared for a death sentence if she said the wrong thing next.

"Nothing, nothing!" Neru excused herself, turning around with a twitching fake smile and quickly grabbing Haku's apron. "You two have fun. We'll catch up later."

"That's what I thought," Miku chirped with a smile, her arm around Haku's shoulders as she led the uncertain girl out of the shack. "Let's go, Haku."

"O-okay," the silver-haired girl agreed softly, gazing softly back to Teto, who was completely caught up in the work now. Then, she turned her eyes back to the beach and sighed. Why did Teto have to make everything so messy?

"Isn't Haku-chi so cute when she gets all freaked out like that?" giggled Teto to Neru after Haku and Miku left as she bounced over to the kitchen to grab platters to serve. Neru cast a small glare as her only response, irritated by Teto's insanity. It had gotten her in trouble with Miku, and that was never fun. "It just makes me want to jump on her and cuddle her! She's so adorable!"

"Teto, shut up," muttered Neru, in a sour mood after failing at having her shift taken away. And, even worse, if she'd been stuck working with anyone else, it would have been fine, but, no, she was stuck with this chatterbox. Of course, the feeling wasn't mutual. Teto loved anyone who would shut up and let her talk. And, as such, she failed to notice Neru's irritability.

"She just gets so freaked out whenever I make some noise! It's like she thinks I'm gonna get in trouble, but have I gotten in trouble even once? Huh, Neru? Have I? Nope, not at all, because Haku's always there to keep me out of trouble!"

"She wouldn't have to keep you out of trouble if you weren't always causing trouble," acknowledged Neru, leaning against the wall beside the kitchen as she watched Teto jumping between tables and successfully serving the entire shack singlehandedly. It was admittedly rather impressive, but Neru was still annoyed that she couldn't be at the beach right now.

As she returned from serving the platters, Teto gave Neru an are-you-serious? look and said, "Yeah, I know. Why do you think I'm always causing trouble?"

Neru blinked a couple times, shocked by the serious response. Then, she looked straight at Teto, who was gathering more trays from the kitchen, and wondered, "Do you actually mean it when you say you love her?"

Teto glanced at Neru inquisitively and called over her shoulder as she started handing out people's orders, "Well of course I do. Why else would I say it?"

"I think everyone assumes you're just trying to get a reaction out of her," reasoned Neru, resisting the urge to text Miku and tell her about this. At the very least, she had to resist the urge to text while she was meant to be working, even if she didn't do any actual work. "You don't seem very serious when you say it."

"I don't?" Teto wondered, pausing in her work to stare at Neru, completely serious for the first time Neru could recall. She took up a pensive look as she mumbled, "Well that's no good." Then, she gazed worriedly at her friend. Neru was starting to feel concerned. She wasn't used to Teto looking even remotely sane. "What should I do, Neru?"

. . .

"She's so stupid sometimes," Miku sighed as she walked along the beach with Haku. Haku nodded glumly, her mind still on Teto's embarrassing show of affection earlier. It bothered her even more knowing that it was just a joke. "Really, you think she'd know the limits by now."

"It's okay," murmured Haku in response, allowing the bright sunlight piercing her eyes to make her even more depressed. "It's not like she does it on purpose or anything. She's just being silly, right?"

"But she's got to be completely dense not to notice that you have feelings for her, Haku, and if she does notice, then that behaviour is completely not okay," argued Miku, scowling at her friend's passiveness. "You really have to tell her that, Haku."

Haku's face flushed bright red as she stammered, "But that would mean I'd have to confess to her, and there's no way I could ever do that. There's no way she thinks of me that way or she'd never act like this."

"Haku-chi!"

"Speak of the devil," breathed Miku as she and Haku paused in their walking to turn to see Teto running over to them. Miku raised her voice and called to Teto, "Aren't you supposed to be working?"

"Neru's gonna do it!" called Teto in return, neglecting to mention that, in return, she had to pay Neru's phone bill for three months. "There's something very important that I need to know!"

"Which is?" Miku continued with a raised voice. Haku's face was turning into tomatoes as she felt eyes turning toward them as the other girls continued yelling to each other.

"M-Miku," she stammered, clinging onto her friend and trying her best not to be noticed by onlookers.

"Haku, do you like me?" Teto called, and Haku froze stiff. No. No no no. This couldn't be happening. It was too embarrassing. Heat was spreading to her ears now.

"Why?" Miku responded on Haku's behalf, which the other girl was grateful for. She was too humiliated to say anything.

"Because I like you, Haku, and I thought you liked me, too." Teto was coming to a halt in front of them now, so she wasn't screaming anymore. Haku gazed into Teto's unnaturally serious gaze. "But if you don't like me, I'll leave you alone. I didn't realize I was being a bother."

Quickly, though, Haku was shaking her head and insisting, "That's not it, Teto! I do . . . l-like you. I didn't think you liked me, too, though."

Teto blinked at her in disbelief. "But I always say it."

Haku looked down skittishly and murmured, "I didn't think you were serious though."

Then, before she knew it, Teto got the hug she'd been hunting for earlier. Miku had shoved Haku forward, where she was caught by Teto and held tightly. "Geez, Haku," sighed Teto, grinning from ear to ear. "You really thought I didn't like you? I was starting to think you didn't like me because you avoided me whenever I told you how I felt. If you liked me, you should have just said it."

Haku, her face burning as she hid it in Teto's chest, went quiet for a moment. Then, softly, quietly, those words came into the air between them.

"I like you, Teto."