He was going to call. She swore he would. It's only been two days, right? That surely meant that he would answer back today. She had asked him if they were going out tomorrow, meaning he'd have to give her a response soon.

Surely enough, that response came.

"hopefully i can xoxo"

Minako slammed her pencil against the desk, probably breaking the lead at its tip. What kind of response was that? She was just trying to do her homework in peace. Of course he had to answer just then. Being a college student sure is great, she thought. Minako had to submit that piece of art for the workshop soon. If not, she'd be, in short, fucked. Yet, her mind seemed to keep drawing back to Akio.

He said he likes me, right? And he kissed me! I mean, what kind of guy would say that he likes you then just drop you like that? Especially if he was your own crush. He couldn't possibly do that to me, right?

The brunette stared at her work. The lines were okay, at most. She groaned. All this distraction was getting in the way of her work. She had promised herself that she would never let a crush do this to her again, but it seemed to fail every time she found herself even thinking a guy was cute. Minako knew that crushing was definitely not a good idea, but she couldn't help but yearn for more. She ripped the paper in front of her, the frustration slipping out from in between her teeth and through the sound of her pencil hitting the other wall. Finally, the feeling of rejection caught up to her, and quietly struck her down bit by bit. It wasn't that she was desperate, not at all! She had guys who would stop and ogle at her, or guys who would try to flirt with her senselessly. All she wanted, however, was someone to be genuinely interested.

It didn't help that Minato already found a girlfriend in Chihiro. They were going strong, for three years now, and Chihiro was soon to be Minako's official roommate unless she stopped staying over. Minako wasn't jealous, if you asked, but it was only then that she realized all her exes were shit.

Spending all this time moping, she almost missed the smooth, low voice that sounded from her radio.

"Hello everyone. As always this is Castor, the one and only, favorite late night DJ. You guys already know it, it's that hour- call in and we'll talk about everything- the taboo things included. Meanwhile, this first song is SAINT PEPSI's Fiona Coyne. Enjoy it."

The show was one she had just happened to come across one night when she had one too many a drink with her friends. She returned to the apartment, finding that Minato was still gone, probably with Chihiro, and mentally gagged. It was then that she found herself craving eggs, so she headed to the kitchen and began to prepare some. Midway through, the brunette decided that it was too quiet and turned on the radio. That was when she first heard DJ Castor's low, but pleasant vocie, and decent music taste.

And this was how Minato found her, bunched up in her room, devouring some eggs and listening to a lazy DJ discuss love life problems. He sometimes offended his listeners with his blunt remarks, and sometimes got praise for telling it straight.

From there, the rest was history.

After that night, Minako found herself listening to him daily, especially when she was stuck doing these stupid projects. She would leave her canvas open, the radio blasting, and her phone by her side.

Just in case her crush at the moment decided to text her.

At that moment, the song ended. The girl heard a familiar voice come back on the radio,

"That was it for the song. Now is the time for me to take calls, so drop one and we'll discuss life with the lucky caller number nine."

Minako's face began to turn red, and her heart began to pound as an idea began to form in her head. She never really thought about it, except for one really pathetic time, but what if she called? This DJ seemed like a guy who wouldn't beat around the bush, saying the truth, when her girls would just say, "He's just playing hard to get, Minako. You just have to wait, Minako."

She kind of needed someone to tell it to her straight.

Minako swore she could hear her heart all the way up in her ears, as she began to dial the number that Castor had listed off so many times, she practically memorized it by now. Then, her heart stopped.

Minako was told that she was caller number nine, and that she would be put on hold. Her plan seemed to work, but did she really want it to? She could end the call right here. But, as the seconds flew by, she made no move to press the end button. In the end, she probably sounded stupid, as she was startled by the low voice of Castor greeting her.

"Caller number nine! Should we keep you by that name, or call you something else?"

"Nine..." Minako whispered to herself, "Nine is fine."

"Alright then, caller number nine. Why don't you tell us your story, or question?"

Minako hesitated for a bit. She didn't really know what to imagine, of course. Was the DJ leaning in front of the mic, truly interested in what she had to say? Minako knew better. He was probably sprawled in his chair, looking somewhat like a comfy cat.

"Nine...?" The voice shook her out of her thoughts. She cleared her throat, and spoke.

"Well, there's this guy I like."

The DJ chuckled, "There's always a guy. Or, a girl, for you other listeners."

Minako nodded, though he couldn't see her, and continued, "Well, he's a year older than me, and we met in a lecture. We talked a bit here and there, but were never really friends."

Castor interrupted, "Did he ever ask you out?"

"Well," Minako stuttered, "After a.. Drunk bar kiss..."

She laughed nervously.

"I see.." He thought for a moment, "Not interested. Just looking for fun."

"I mean, he told me he liked me and has for a while..."

Castor snorted, "Did he call you ever since your.. well, date?"

"We, um, texted."

"As I said, not interested. He's just there for your attractiveness, but is probably indecisive. He's there for you, just not all of you. You got me?" Castor truly was a force to be reckoned with- and Minako wanted to challenge that force.

"What if he's just shy and awkward?" She questioned, trying to get him to think about other sides.

"Nope." The DJ shook his head on the other side of the line, "This boy, whatever his name is, just probably didn't want to hurt your feelings. But he did, excuse my language, and he's a dick. You, caller number nine, are wasting your time."

Minako flushed red at this. How could he do this? How could some random stranger pick apart her situation so easily, while here she was, trying to find excuses for her rejection. What the heck.

"Wasted... my time?"

"Yes, dear, he did. But don't let him know you're upset, it'll only make him satisfied. Here's some advice- being sincere is a problem, you end up seeing everyone as sincere as well. Start being a bit more... cynical."

Cynical? How in the world could she do that? Another question popped into her head.

"How? How is it so easy for people to do that? A girl can literally throw herself at a man and they'll say yes. How do I know when someone is being sincere and when they aren't?"

Castor sighed, "You're lucky I like you, caller number nine. You're naive. Let me give you, and my other listeners, a little secret. When you like someone, get the upper hand. Stop placing this person of your dreams on a pedestal, because when it comes down to it, they're just like all of us. What you have to do is act like you're a prize to be won, and that they're lucky enough to have your attention. Or at least, learn to not give a shit when they tap out."

"That's not right, though!" Minako was starting to get irritated, "All that does is put a wall between people. If you're going to learn how to love, do it properly!"

Minako didn't understand this. She was a romantic at heart, truly. She believed in fairy tales and happy endings, and believed that the world was in pink when you were in love. Now, this grumpy DJ was telling her to act as if she was better than the world.

"Then tell me, caller number nine, what's your plan? Because obviously, this secret strategy is doing wonders for you." Castor challenged Minako to fight him, verbally.

"I mean..." Minako started, "I- I don't have a plan. But, that's okay. I mean, I'd rather be honest about liking someone, rather than running around in circles. What if the one person who had so much potential walked away because I couldn't get off my high horse? This isn't a game, Castor. Love is something people are lucky enough to receive. And I want someone to feel lucky because we're with each other."

Minako took a deep breath. Dang, she hadn't been angry in quite a while.

"That is going to get you places, caller number nine. Just do me a favor, and don't call back when an asshole breaks your heart again."

"Ugh!" Minako ended the call right then and there, as she heard Castor snickering on the radio, as he cut to a commercial break.

As if it was all planned out, her phone rang at that moment. Minako looked at the caller ID to see the name, "Akio". Of course, it was the one person she had been moping about moments ago. She grimaced, and answered the phone as all of her anger spilled out of her.

"Don't call me again." She started, "I don't want to waste my time on someone who won't be straight with me."

She hung up, not even bothering to hear his response.

It would be quite a while until she listened to the local radio again.

Later, when she woke up in the morning, Minako found an endless stream of texts, calls, voicemails, and a picture message or two. She wasn't sure to hate Castor for being right, or happy that he was.

I hate you, Castor.

A/N: Wow I'm back in writing and I want to cry. Well, I hope you enjoyed this first chapter, and I'll be sure to update again soon! Please leave a favorite, follow, or comment!