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"Forgive me, Father, for I have sinned," the voice was of a girl. She sat on the chair inside the confessional, she closed her eyes as she talked.
"What have you done, dear child," the priest asked when the girl didn't continue. He was a man in his fifties, with hair grey and white, and deep wrinkles that settled comfortably in his face.
The girl fidgeted slightly as she frowned, wondering whether it was a good choice—coming to the church to confess. But, before her cowardice could overcome her, the priest ensured her, "No worries, young one. This is between you and me, no one else will know. Your first time doing this?"
The girl huffed, "I know, and yes, I've never confessed before." She leaned her back against the chair and stared up at the ceiling as if it was a blue sky. Before the priest could usher her, she said in an even tone, "I love my best friend."
The priest almost did a double-take when the words left the little girl's mouth but years of listening to people's confessions made him unknowingly numb towards weird things people confessed about. He had heard from old, sick people to young and energetic kids, from multimillionaires to beggars, he was a great listener and was good at his job too. He gently folded his arms together while waiting for the girl to continue.
"I know, I know! It's stupid! I shouldn't have agreed on this!" the girl shook her head furiously. Her lavishing midnight-blue hair followed the motion of her head, slapping from left to right.
The priest sighed, beginners are always stubborn. "Now, now, you shouldn't judge and of course, if you feel uncomfortable, you can always stop." He smiled although he knew she couldn't see him.
"Argh!" she banged her head on the wall that confined her. She muttered in a low voice, "Stupid, stupid, stupid…"
"Dear child, it's always good to let it off your chest, now tell me, who is your best friend?" the priest chuckled, obviously amused by the girl's odd behavior.
The muttering tuned down, and the girl started to speak softly, "She is Fujino Shizuru." The girl shut her eyes and pictured her best friend—crush—smiling at her, instantaneously she smiled herself. Her smile is contagious.
A girl? The priest nodded, forbidden love—well, not so forbidden in this era. He questioned with sincerity, "What makes you think this is a sin?"
"The fact that it's not normal and a lot of people think it's gross and weird," the maturity in the girl's voice was acknowledged by the priest. She buried her face in her hands shamefully although there was no one there.
"Loving someone, is not a sin, young one. As long as you mean them no harm in your love for them, it is acceptable. Tell me more about her," the priest explained in simplicity.
"I don't think so. People who like people of the same gender are not welcomed in the society." She paused for a while, separating the bad from the good, "She has chestnut-brown hair that is usually untied. Her eyes are of the most uncommon colors in the world, red—cardinal—but when there is sunlight, it reflects a soft shade of ruby. Mesmerizing, I'd say."
Ah, love of such pure degree. "Go on. Is she a good student?"
The girl snorted, "The best! She is the President of our class and also a genius. I don't even know how she managed to get undetected by some school for masterminds. Everybody loves her!" Then, she rephrased, "Everybody adores her, I love her."
"I see. Are the both of you close?" the priest asked although he knew the answer to it.
"Of course! She's my best friend! Mom says we've met since we were small babies but we don't remember. Dad also has photos of us when we were in napkins!" excitement danced in her emerald eyes. "Her dad even told us how we used to sleep in the same cradle! We tell each other a lot of secrets, but…I don't know whether I can tell her I love her or not," the blunette's eyebrows slanted into defeated look.
The priest laughed subtly, "Do you think she'll get mad? If you tell her?"
She scratched her mane of blue hair and spoke confusingly, "I don't know. She doesn't really get mad but she's a good actress! She always fakes crying and I don't like to see her cry so I'll do what she wants me to do."
"I'm sure she's just teasing you. You should tell her, I think she'll be happy."
"Really?" her eyes lit up at the hope that was given by the priest.
"Of course, dear child. She's your friend. And friends shouldn't keep secrets from each other."
The girl grinned wholeheartedly, "Thank you, Father. I'll tell you if it works, okay?"
"Yes, that will be nice of you."
--
The girl bounced happily when she came out from the confessional. Her mother who owned the identical mane of blue tresses watched curiously as her daughter went on smiling. "How was it?" she raised a slender brow.
"It was manageable," her daughter replied. "Can we go home, now?"
"Okay, I know you want to see Shizuru-chan," she winked at her.
The little girl blushed and glared at her mother, "Mom!" The older woman laughed at her daughter's cute blush, undoubtedly inherited from her.
--
The young brunette was lying on her bed as she stared absently at the ceiling fan. She turned to the clock and scowled, "Why isn't she here yet?"
She was totally bored when her best friend wasn't with her. And though they had different interests, they connected easily like jigsaw puzzles. She lifted up her right leg and counted her toes, unconsciously counting the seconds that past the meeting time her best friend agreed on.
Then, the bell rang. She instantly sprang up from the floor, wanting to end the boredom that was eating her. But before she rushed down, she thought of an idea. She laid down on her large bed and turned her back against the door, her face facing the window. She could hear the hurried footsteps of her friend.
Meanwhile, the blunette outside was racing up the stairs, her face was lit up like a Christmas tree. She knocked twice on the door and entered. She saw her friend, curled up on her bed, shoulders stiff, not even acknowledging her presence. Immediately, worry rushed through her as she inched herself stealthily closer to her friend. She sat down on the bed and read the time. Oh…
She carefully placed a hand on her shoulder and apologized, "I'm sorry that I'm late, Shizuru. I swear I'll never be late ever, ever again."
It didn't get better. The poor girl tried to explain, "I'm sorry, I went to the confessional today, so it took a little more time than usual, I'm sorry, really sorry, terribly sorry, but I was asking the priest about whether I should…" She shut her mouth up.
The curled up girl was curious since her friend stopped so abruptly. She turned to look at the girl, her red eyes watery, "I want to know what you asked…"
Her friend scowled, but then, she saw that the girl was going to break up in tears—although she wasn't sure whether it was real or fake—she quickly complied. "Okay, I'll tell you. Please, don't cry," she begged while blushing.
That set the deal. The red-eyed girl smiled smugly, no traces of tears or signs of unhappiness could be found on the child's face. The pair of emeralds stared at her friend's immediate recovery and grumbled incoherently. That sly girl!!!
"Now, Natsuki was going to tell me what?" the brown-haired girl asked purposely in a polite tone.
The blunette felt her cheeks burning as she stuttered to answer. Should I lie to her? NO! She'll know… What should I say, what should I say??? Her friend, who was still laying down on the bed chuckled at the redden face.
"Your blush is adorable, Natsuki." This statement caused another gush of blood to rush up into the poor child. She glared at her childhood friend but it had no effect on her.
Red eyes met with green ones, "Again, what did you ask the priest, Nat-su-ki?"
"...she'll be happy" The blue-haired girl forced a small smile and said, "I…love you."
The effects of those three words were remarkable. For the first time, the ever-teasing Shizuru blushed heavenly. Natsuki, seeing her face red, grinned playfully, "I think, your blush is cuter." She mentally made a note, Payback! 2-256, I guess I still have a long way to go.
Slowly, both girls' blushes came to a halt. "So, you told the priest you love me?" the brunette was the one who talked first—it always was.
Natsuki laid herself against the bedpost, next to Shizuru. "No. I asked whether it was okay or not. And whether you'll be okay with it or not."
Giggles could be heard from the older girl as she pressed herself closer to her friend—maybe more than friend. "Silly Natsuki, of course I'm okay with it." She added in a lower voice, "I love you too."
The blunette's face was tinted with pink and she huffed indignantly, "Make that 2-257."
