Love is like a Battlefield

"Kirito," Sinon hissed as she cocked her rifle. "We'll both die if you just stand there."

Just as she retracted behind the boulder, a bullet scraped across her left cheek. "Damn it." A fresh red mark had appeared from where the bullet had struck. She wasted no time and quickly crept back to the edge of the boulder. With one eye closed, she peered into the scope of her rifle. Her indigo colored eyes flickered over the haze of bullets, the desert sand, the sparsely scattered cactuses, then rested upon a man clad in heavy armor, hidden behind a large outcrop of rocks. A red beam of light emanated from her weapon, directed at the man's head. Before he could react, Sinon pressed her finger on the trigger.

Boom.

An explosion tore through the air like a fiery roar. Debris flew everywhere, followed by the sound of furious teammates who shouted and cursed like maniacs.

Sinon sighed in relief, "How troublesome."

Her usual calm demeanor suddenly transformed into one of fear. A beam of light had been angled at Kirito's chest and he didn't even seem the least bit bothered by it. As much as she'd like to think that Gun Gale Online is just another virtual game, she couldn't help but treat it as a reality, too. "K-Kirito-kun!"

Dropping her rifle, Sinon hurried out from behind the boulder and towards Kirito, who stood motionless in the battlefield. She reached into her thigh holster and pulled out a pistol. With one firm push of the feet, she shoved herself against Kirito just as the bullet pierced through her left arm. She pointed the pistol at the shooter and then fired a few shots, hitting the shooter straight in the chest. Her entire left arm disappeared as she fell on top of Kirito.

"Sinon?" Kirito said, surprised.

Realizing how close she was to him, her face turned completely red. "D-Don't look at me that way, you idiot! If I hadn't saved your butt just now, you would have -"

Kirito quickly flashed out his lightsaber and deflected a bullet that was headed her way. Her mouth dropped open in stunned silence.

"Sinon, let's take cover behind that boulder. They're aiming for us now."

She nodded and they both ran back towards the boulder. The bullets continued to rain in the distance, the bombs bellowing like the sound of thunder.

Once they were behind the boulder, Sinon couldn't help but question him about his mood. He was fine yesterday. He dodged bullets and struck his opponents effortlessly as usual. But today, it was different. He didn't seem completely like himself.

"What's the matter with you to-" She stopped before she could finish the question, as it slowly began to dawn on her. "It's about her... isn't it?"

Kirito remained silent.

"...Kirito-kun." She looked down at her hand. "I-I'm sorry. I shouldn't have acted that way towards you. It's only been a month since she left... I can't expect you to move on so soon. I just thought that dragging you into GGO would have at least helped you take your mind off her for a while. But despite that... you're still thinking about her."

"No," Kirito said quietly. "I appreciate it, Sinon. Thank you."

Sinon clenched her fist to ease her nervousness. She felt her heart beating a little faster than usual. "I think... I think you should date other people in the meantime!" she boldly blurted. Her face started to flush a bright pink.

Kirito, all the while, seemed unfazed. "To be honest -"

"Think about it!" she continued. "There are other people waiting in line just to date you. I'm sure there's someone out there who would love to have a chance with you, even if... even if it doesn't work out in the end."

Sinon felt like she had said a little too much, and thought that she should retract her words. "But you and Asuna are only on a break, right? Which doesn't mean that it's over yet," she said, as much as it had hurt to say it. "Maybe she'll come back. You never know. One month is too short to tell."

Although, knowing Asuna, she will definitely come back.

Kirito's face began to brighten a little. "Yeah, you're right."

"Cheer up now," Sinon smiled. "The Kirito I know is strong, oblivious, and arrogant."

"Heh, an insult within a compliment?" Kirito smiled as he shook his head. "Thank you, Sinon. You're kinder than I'd thought. But just to remind you," he placed one hand on her head, "we shouldn't be having such a friendly conversation in the middle of a battle. That's one rule a player should never break."

"H-Hey! You do realize that -"

"Eh, Sinon... do you have my back?" Kirito asked, as he withdrew his lightsaber and stepped out into the battlefield.

There was a moment of silence. She looked at him with her mouth slightly opened. "...Of course I do."

She watched him slowly disappear into the field of golden sand. Every step he took only separated her further and further away from him. She laid down on her stomach once more and peered into the scope of her sniper.

This was her only chance with Kirito. She realized that she couldn't sit around and wait anymore. As oblivious as he was, she decided that she had no choice but to take initiative. Perhaps she wasn't in love with him yet. But she knew that there was more to their bond than this. She knew that somewhere along the way, she had developed feelings for him, feelings that ran deeper than friendship, deeper than any love she had ever known.

But of course, she didn't expect him to hand himself over so easily. She also didn't expect his admirers to happily stand out of her way as she made a move on him, nor did she expect Asuna to let her have him just like that. She accepted that she had to fight for him. Her eyes turned fierce with determination.

And she's not bound to lose this time.

Author's Note: Hi everyone~ Grace here. :3 I hoped you all enjoyed this short story. Thank you so much for stopping and reading my work, as it means a lot to me. This is originally supposed to be a one-shot, but I may perhaps extend it in the future. Who knows. :-)