Melt ~ Someone Grab Me a Mop

Kaito had often done brash things in his lifetime, but never something as brave as what he was about to do. He had often thought about saying it; he had imagined the scenario time and time again, and in his mind, it was as easy as cake. I love you! That's all he had to say; that was it. It should have been simple, effortless really. But for some unknown, frustrating reason, Kaito could never gather the courage. No matter how hard he tried, it always came out in jumbled nonsense, making the girl look at him in confusion.

"Kaito, are you… alright?" She'd ask, wearing that adorable expression that she always did.

He'd try to tell her, "I'm fine, I just wanted to," before he'd quickly look away, "get some ice cream. That's all. Do you want one?"

But not anymore. Finally, Kaito was going to do it. He was going to say it; swallow his pride or whatever was keeping him back and finally tell her. It was certain; he was going to succeed. Taking in a deep breath as he did his best to relax his mind, Kaito continued onward down the street. "Three little words, that's all." Kaito whispered to himself as he rounded the final corner. "Three words!"

Strolling down the street so casually had become a part of his daily routine, so when it came to that part of his plan, Kaito had no trouble. He waltzed down her street, up her walkway, and onto her doorstep without a problem, and when he rang her doorbell, he felt as confident as could be. It was when she opened the door; however, that he started to worry. Though it was subtle at first, it was the first step of many that he had worked so hard to avoid.

Her hair was in its usual do, and as such, it was the first thing that caught his eye. The long teal pig-tails swung back and forth as she smiled at him, "Kaito, right on time!" She exclaimed, her sea green eyes shining with excitement as she stepped forward. "Where are we going today?"

He smiled as she closed the door behind her, "Through the park. They finally finished that fountain!"

"Aw, sweet!" She exclaimed, taking his arm in hers. "What does it look like?"

"You'll see."

"Come on Kaito, tell me!"

Smirking, he shook his head. "You'll just have to be patient, Miku. You'll see it when we get there."

Miku sighed once before she let her cheerful expression take over again. "All righty then, let's go!" And with that, Miku took the lead, pulling him down the stairs as if she owned him. "But I do want to know one thing… does it look good?"

"Yes, it does." He said, chuckling as she tugged him along faster and faster. "Trust me!"

His words only made her more eager, and she increased her speed again, which made Kaito laugh.

After a few minutes of walking at a near running speed, they finally found their way into the park. And as always, the park looked amazing. There were children running and playing, pet-owners walking their dogs, and young couples strolling hand in hand, each wearing a smile that lit up the park by tenfold. The grass had been freshly cut, and its aroma was abundant throughout the area. It brought about an aura of friendliness and familiarity, leaving a peaceful smile on Kaito's lips. To put it simply, the scent comforted him.

It wasn't even five steps into the park; however, that Miku spotted the fountain and squealed, "There!" She dashed off so suddenly that Kaito nearly landed flat on his face trying to keep up with her.

Once they were by the fountain, her eyes lit up like the sun. "Amazing! They did a fantastic job!" She exclaimed, releasing Katio as she examined it. "It's better than I expected it." And indeed, it looked beautiful.

Before them on the fountain stood a man and woman clad in fancy attire, frozen in their waltz with smiles on their faces. Around the happy couple were several chubby faced cherubims, each one wearing a careful smile and a small cloth around their middle. One of them was even holding an instrument of some sort, from which the water spurted out and decorated the rest of the statues with light, sparkly of liquid.

It must have impressed Miku, for she continued to gawk at it for a few moments before sighing dreamily. "It's so romantic. Don't you think?"

Kaito smiled once, nodding in approval (though she was too busy staring to have noticed the gesture). "Yes, it is." Miku's grin widened at his remark, instantly sending a boost of confidence through his body. Perhaps it was the time to tell her.

Taking in a deep breath, Kaito closed his eyes for only a moment. "Miku, may I tell you something?" And then, once he sure of himself, he opened them.

As quickly as humanly possible, Miku turned to him. "Yes?" Without a moment's notice, all of her attention had been brought back to Kaito, her eyes brimming with a sudden sense of excitement.

Doing his best not to seem surprised by her sudden anticipation, Kaito swallowed. "I, um…" And there it was again. He couldn't find the words that had been so clear only a few moments ago, and for a second, he felt frozen in his place. Then, when he looked away for only a moment, he melted on the spot. "Do you want some ice cream?"

The enthusiasm that had graced her body faded as quickly as it had been born, leaving a disappointed scowl on her face. She sighed, "I guess so."

Kaito swallowed, but smiled nonetheless. "Alrighty, then I'll buy!" Despite the cheerful ring in his tone, she frowned and said nothing. It gave him all the more reason to hurry off toward the ice cream cart.

A few minutes later, the two were sitting on opposite sides of a park bench, both licking their ice cream in complete silence. Miku was eating her mint chocolate chip ice cream with an angry glare on her face, making Kaito do his best eat his sea salt ice cream quietly; as if staring at it wrong could have ended his life. The only looks Miku would send him were those of disappointment and anger, and in all honesty, Kaito didn't know what to say. He didn't even know why she was mad. He had been the only one to know what he was going to tell her that day, so there was no way for her to be mad because of that. And since he couldn't think of any other reason, he found himself pondering of what it could be, each possible answer followed by a tone of uncertainty. Of course, that was fixed rather quickly.

Without a fair warning, Miku growled and stood up off the bench. "Darn it Kaito!" Her angry words made him jump, "Why can't you grow a backbone?"

"Backbone?" He shot up off the bench, a confused expression taking over.

"Yes Kaito, a backbone!" She exclaimed, throwing her ice cream onto the ground. "You were finally going to say it! You were so close! But what? What was the matter this time? Did you get scared at the last moment like you always do? Or did you change your mind? For crying out loud Kaito, why won't you say it?" By that point she was yelling, which easily caught the attention of most of the park-dwellers.

Noticing such, Kaito brought a hand out, "Miku, I—"

"No!" She exclaimed, grabbing his hand. "No more! I've known for weeks what you've been trying to do, and I've lost my patience waiting! If you don't—" Miku paused to watch Kaito take a bit out of the ice cream bar, making her grit her teeth. "Enough!" She yelled swatting the bar out of his grasp. "I've had enough! We've been dating for how long now, and you still don't have the courage to say anything?"

Though he had been confused on what she had been talking for a few moments, the connection was suddenly made in his mind. How on Earth had she known that he was trying to say it to her? His eyes widened a little as she continued. "I swear Bakaito," She spat, adding extra emphasis on the ba prefix, "If it wasn't for the fact that you're so sweet, I'd b—" And for some reason that even Kaito couldn't fathom, he had gathered all of his courage at that moment and pulled her into a kiss.

To be perfectly honest, Kaito didn't know who was more surprised; Miku or him. What had he been thinking? She had been yelling at him and he had kissed her to calm her down? And to boot, he had thought of using it as part of his confession! A kiss of all things! It was one of the most—if not the most—unconventional, idiotic methods to say I love you, and in all sincerity, Kaito didn't know if it would get the message across. Most likely, he was going to get a slap across the face instead.

Once he pulled away, the very first thing he realized was that Miku was blushing slightly. "Kaito… you…" And although she seemed to be more surprised than anything, she quickly got over her it. "You kissed me!" She exclaimed, throwing her arms around him, "You finally kissed me! I can't believe it took you so long! Rin was right!"

Kaito stood there in surprise for only a second before he made sense of her words, "Wait, Rin told you?" He exclaimed in disbelief, "I only told—"

"Len. But he told Rin, and Rin told me." Miku smiled, "Your secret was never really safe."

Kaito huffed, "I guess not." But he quickly put on a gentle smile. "But I guess that's okay. Otherwise, I would have never been able to tell you this, Miku." And then, he kissed her lightly on the forehead. "I love you."

She giggled a heartfelt and joyful sound, "And I love you Kaito!"

He laughed in return once before looking down at the melted treats. "The only regret I have is that innocent ice cream lost its life. Such a pity."

Miku merely laughed, "Don't worry; I'll buy you some more."

My first non-Sonic story! ^^ I hope you guys liked it. I had a lot of fun writing it. :)

Up next is Rin and Len's one-shot!