"Location: Modesto, California, July 19th 2019"
Kimi yawned lightly and leaned her head on her hand. She had barely gotten an hour of sleep the previous night. She and Chuckie had to open the Java Lava at five in the morning, while Chaz and Kira were back at the Finster house because they were taking a day off from working at the coffee shop, and it was long before the day was close to being over. Kimi looked up and surveyed the coffee shop. Chuckie and Nicole, who were now dating, were playing checkers. Rourke was typing on a typewriter that he had brought from his world so he could do work while he visited Chuckie and Kimi. And a group of teenage girls were in a corner, giggling wildly about something.
"What a way to spend the day." Banzai, who was also visiting Chuckie and Kimi, said as he walked behind the counter and refilled a smoothie that he was drinking.
Kimi nodded.
"No kidding. At least my parents are giving me the weekend off." Kimi said.
Just then, one of the girls from the group of teenage girls in the corner, a brunette with dark green eyes, came up to the counter and smiled warmly.
"Can I get a medium Latte Macchiato? Hot with whipped cream, please?" the brunette asked.
Kimi nodded and went to do her order. Once she was done, she brought the coffee over to the brunette.
"$4.23." Kimi said.
The brunette handed her a five dollar bill.
"Keep the change." Kimi said.
The brunette nodded and left the Java Lava. As she left, Peter walked into the coffee shop. Kimi looked up at him and smiled.
"Peter, just the man I wanted to see. We need to talk." Kimi said.
Peter looked nervous as he approached her.
"Kimi?" Peter asked.
Kimi looked down at a cell phone that she owned.
"It's about the plans the two of us and the others made for tomorrow. I was looking them over and I noticed..." Kimi started to reply. She looked up at Peter, frowned, and asked "Peter? Are you listening to me?".
Peter nodded, slightly jumpy.
"Yes, of course!" Peter replied. He then shook his head and said "Actually, no. I kind of had something to... do. I wanted to talk to you really quickly if that's possible.".
Kimi looked questioningly at her friend. She had noticed that her friend was slightly jumpy, something that she wasn't used to. But before she could ask him about it, Rourke came up for a refill. Chuckie and Nicole walked over and stood behind the counter.
"We have this, Kimi." Chuckie said.
Kimi raised an eyebrow at her step-brother and his girlfriend.
"Are you sure?" Kimi asked.
Nicole smiled and nodded.
"Yeah, go talk with Peter. We can cover for you while you talk to him." Nicole replied.
Kimi nodded, and she and Peter walked to the back of the Java Lava and sat at a table that had been set up in a break room. Kimi twisted a long strand of dark purple hair around her finger and then looked up at Peter.
"Peter, I noticed that your acting very strange. Are you hiding something from me?" Kimi asked.
Peter shook his head.
"H-Hide? You mean, HIDE hide? Oh, gosh, no! N-Nothing at all... nope." Peter replied nervously.
"Then why are you fidgeting like you've got a squirrel in your pants?" Kimi asked.
"I-I'm not fidgeting! I'm perfectly relaxed... and normal." Peter replied.
"And refusing to meet my eye?" Kimi asked. She crossed her arms and asked "Listen, Peter, didn't you say that we're close friends, with no secrets between us? Did you actually mean that?".
"N-No! I mean, yes! I mean... I promise, it's not like that!" Peter replied.
Kimi sighed.
"I know you've been avoiding me recently, and I'd like to know why. I think I need to have an explanation. Please. I can't go on pretending that there's nothing wrong. Do you not like my company anymore?" Kimi asked.
"Dislike you? Of course I don't dislike you! Nothing could be further from the truth." Peter replied.
"Then why are you avoiding me?" Kimi asked.
Peter remained silent for a few moments, but then he sighed.
"Well, it's just that... we've been friends for a very long time, now. At first, I thought of you as a friend, and I've felt that bond grow between us. And then I realized... you were more then just a friend." Peter replied.
Kimi raised an eyebrow in confusion.
"What do you mean?" Kimi asked.
"I mean I care about you, Kimi. As a man, and you as a woman." Peter replied.
Kimi frowned in realization.
"Peter, we can't possibly..." Kimi started to say.
Peter held up a hand.
"Wait, please! I've come this far, and it's too late for me to turn back now." Peter said.
"But when your this nervous, you might say something that you'll regret." Kimi said.
Peter frowned.
"I don't care! I've tried to keep this bottled up, but I can't do it anymore! I'm going to tell you how I feel, even if my head explodes in embarrassment!" Peter said.
Kimi was slightly taken aback by his statement, but she nodded.
"Okay." Kimi said.
"Alright, deep breath... okay, I'm set now. Here it goes. Prepare yourself because I'm going to say it!" Peter said.
"Then say it already!" Kimi said.
Peter nodded and looked her straight in the eye.
"Kimi... I'm in love with you." Peter said.
Kimi wasn't sure what to say, so she just remained silent.
"I have been from the very first moment I laid eyes on you. I just didn't realize it until a little while back." Peter explained.
Again, Kimi remained silent.
"Look, I know this is really sudden, but I'm not trying to force you into a decision. Whatever your answer is, I'll be fine with it... no matter how painful it is. And no matter what happens, we'll always be friends." Peter said.
Kimi crossed her arms and sighed.
"This is... I'm sorry, Peter, but this could never work. The king of one of the most powerful nations on the planet and his best friend, who's a commoner, in a relationship? It just... it wouldn't be right. Your first responsibility must be to the nation you lead, not me. You understand that, don't you?" Kimi asked.
Peter nodded.
"Yes, I do." Peter replied.
"But, someday, the two of us will come of age where we can marry. And when that happens, we'll be free to follow our hearts." Kimi replied.
"Our hearts?" Peter asked.
Kimi smiled and nodded.
"Yes... because I love you as well." Kimi replied.
Peter gasped.
"You do? But that's... that's... wonderful! This is the best day of my life!" Peter said.
Kimi smiled.
"Me too." Kimi said.