I had the idea for this fanfic and wrote it down on a piece of paper a couple years back, lol. Enjoy this fanfic as much as I enjoyed writing it~

Also... I re-updated this chapter cuz I realized that I made a mistake... XD I said that Junpei had brown eyes instead of gray ones... I'm so horrible(and color-blind jk) b-but it's cuz I haven't played this game in ages! Dx Please forgive me. qq

NOTE: [This] is Junpei's thoughts. [This] is Hamuko's thoughts.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own anything, ATLUS owns these awesome characters.

"Just friends?" Hamuko, the ruby-eyed auburn haired woman, had asked.

Hamuko has been wondering about her love life for a while now. She remembered how happy she had felt when Shinjiro was still here. Even though he was so rough towards her, a man who didn't know how to confess his feelings was a guy that caught Hamuko's attention. Shinjiro didn't really seem like the type of guy to fall in love with Hamuko, but then again… Shinjiro and Hamuko were very mysterious in many different ways.

But then… after Hamuko finally was able to confess to Shinjiro and he was able to do the same, Shinjiro had died by the hands of Takaya himself. Everything went down after that…. But there was one person who cheered Hamuko up the most after this happening…. It was Junpei. Junpei was right by Hamuko's side as she was crying her heart out, knowing that her love was not going to come back. Now here they are, present day. Hamuko realized that all this time, she was able to move on and fall in love with someone again.

Junpei and Hamuko were on the rooftop of Gekkoukan High School. The temperature was cool, and the wind felt wonderful. The view from the rooftop was breathtaking. But Junpei and Hamuko weren't there to enjoy it. They were having a conversation.

Junpei's dark gray eyes stared into Hamuko's ruby ones blankly.

"Huh?" Junpei suddenly responded in a worried tone. "Oh, so you want to be more than friends?"

He clearly didn't understand what Hamuko had meant by "just friends." Junpei looked to his side, thinking about what to name the relationship of Hamuko and himself under their current status as friends. He then looked up at Hamuko's face, staring into the red eyes that saw everything—his personality, his pain, and his own emotions.

"How about…," Junpei started, looking down at his hands, "…hmmm, I dunno. Best friends…? Yeah! That sounds about it! Best friends it is!"

Hamuko closed her eyes and gently shook her head. She opened her eyes and focused them down at Junpei's hand, longing to hold it. Then, she looked back into Junpei's face, his smiling face seemingly being able to light up Hamuko's solemn mood. Just looking at Junpei's face made Hamuko at least a little bit happier. She loved looking at his bright face and cheer along with him. She felt joyful just thinking about how happy he made her.

With her expressionless face, she stared deep into Junpei's eyes and uttered out the sentences, "Just friends? Not… lovers…?"

Junpei's eyes widened into panic. His face was filled with a dark red hue, obviously embarrassed of Hamuko's question. Junpei shook his head wildly, trying to wake up from this "dream."

"W-wha-!?" Junpei laughed nervously. "Y-you're kiddin', r-right? Haha…."

Hamuko, realizing that Junpei didn't feel the same way, turned away to look at the scenery. Hiding her watery eyes, she laughed and spoke, "Of course I'm kidding! Haha, why would I like a pervert like you?"

Junpei felt relieved that Hamuko was only joking, but he was also a bit unhappy. He liked Hamuko when they first met, but he knew that she would never feel the same way. Besides, she had Shinjiro-senpai. Shinjiro was a lot stronger than Junpei himself, and he was pretty sure that girls liked strong men. Besides, Hamuko and Shinjiro have been going out in secret before Shinjiro's sudden death. But Junpei was confused. No matter how forceful Hamuko was in a relationship, she was always so careful of others' feelings. So why would she say this to Junpei, knowing that Junpei had obviously liked her from the start?

"Uhhh," Hamuko giggled, "I'm very sorry, okay? I'm sorry I frightened you and played a bit. Look, I'll make it up to you, alright?" Hamuko turned to Junpei and smiled. "How about Hagakure the next time we hang out?"

"Uhhh—"

"Okay, it's a date! I'll be seeing ya back at the dorm then! I've gotta go do some things, so leave without me, okay?" Hamuko grinned again and walked through the door that lead back into the school. She looked back one last time before she waved, skipping happily to the hallway.

[Wait a minute…. Were those… tears? Did I see tears come out of Hamuko's eyes?]

Junpei shook his head and laughed nervously. "Nah, I must be seeing things. Hamuko would never cry over some mistake like this."

Junpei looked out at the town, recalling all of the times Hamuko would cry in front of Junpei. No matter how many friends Hamuko had, Junpei would always be the one she would come to if she needed to cry. She didn't even talk to her twin brother Minato about it—heck, Minato claimed that he barely knew her anymore. Hamuko kept so many secrets from everyone, thinking that she can endure the pain herself.

Junpei shook his head and looked up at the orange afternoon sky. "Or would she?"

...

Hamuko ran to the second floor of Gekkoukan High and ran into the women's restroom. She washed her face of the tears that accompanied her wet eyes with sink water and wiped the condensed water off from the mirror, looking at herself.

[What was I thinking? Why did I ask Junpei a question like that? What am I, an idiot? Ugh, of course I am…. I'm a wreck who doesn't even know how to control her own feelings…. Why would Junpei like me? He's obviously still in love with Chidori, even though she had died….]

Hamuko splashed more water on her face, shaking her head. She glanced back at the door, frowning a bit as she realized that she had to get out of school grounds soon. She sighed heavily and walked out of the women's restroom. Hamuko stood outside the restroom door for a moment, then she sighed again and walked on.

Hamuko has had trouble with her love life even before coming to Gekkoukan High. She wasn't really a romantic teenager. She forced her feelings to other people, making the boys even more shy. Even though a lot of guys found her attractive, none of them had the courage to talk to her, much less ask her out. She had always been the type of person to be fragile when a guy leaves her, even crying when she realized that no one had the courage to ask her out. She wanted love. She wanted to experience it and find out what her friends were talking about whenever they spoke of their boyfriend. She was curious and never wanted to be left out.

Hamuko laughed at herself, noticing how foolish she was being. Of course, if she couldn't force love, then she had to wait for love to come to her. But she was impatient, and she already loved Junpei. She just didn't know if he loved her back. It was an ongoing question, one that was filling her mind up everyday. She couldn't go a day without thinking about this question that constantly tore her mind in half. Does Junpei love her back? Or does he want to be "just friends"?

Well, is it an okay fanfic? XD Hahah, I might edit this in the future. Be on the look-out for new chapters! :3 XP Anyways, R&R please! Thanks a lot for reading! X3 *huggles everyone* Luv ya all!~

EDIT: God, you're such a weeaboo, Dio-chan. Shut up, Cy-kun. e.e Anyway, as Cy-kun was saying, I'm such a weeaboo... I'll be re-editing my freaking weeaboo author's notes, so lol. Do people still read these? *awkwardly laughs* J-just move on to the next chapter please..

~theIdiosocracy, Dio-chan and Cy-kun