Disclaimer: Kagerou Project and Mekakucity Actors are the property of Shizen no Teki-P (Jin) and Shaft,Inc. I do no receive any money for this text.

Note: The one-shot you are about to read is the first part of a writing project: 30 Shinaya one-shots based on the "30 days OTP challenge" themes. Since inspirations is a really capricious thing, I won't post an one-shot per day, but I'll try to post new one-shot as regularly as possible.

The rating is due to some scenes less "innocents" that will happend later.

I must also say that English isn't my first language, and even if I try my best to making my text understandable, it will probably comporting errors; so, if some errors in this one-shot had particularly bugs you, feel free for telling me! It would be very helpful!

The scene takes place a few minutes after the end of the anime. This is also the first time ever that I write about Shinaya and Kagerou Project in general, so I hope nobody will be too "out of character" ^^'

It's not really the point of this note, but: happy birthday to our red angel, Tateyama Ayano!

Well, I've finish this (way too long) introduction. So... Even if I'm very unsure about my text, I hope you'll enjoy it!

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"Shintaro! Hurry up!"

The young man glanced wearily at his friend. The heat was overpowering, and he sweated abundantly. What a weird idea, also, to wear a jacket in August!

In her white dress that waved cheerfully to the rhythm of her steps, Ayano don't suffer of the heat. She seemed cool, just like a blooming flower, her perpetual smile floating on her lips like for encouraging her NEET friend to peak up the pace for avoid getting behind the others Mekakushi-Dan's members. One day, Kido (or Tsubomi, as Ayano preferred call her) also should tell him her secret for giving no sign of sweating with 27°C at the shadow!

The heat haze floating in the air, added to Shintaro's vision spoiled by the computer screen, gived to his friends walking before him an illusory aspect, making them looking like ghost. The young man stopped and shook his head, like for banning this unpleasant thought of his mind.

Seeing him doing that, Ayano finally gave up the idea of rejoining the others and slowed her perky pace for following Shintaro's shuffling walk

"That's what happens when you spend all time at the computer!"

"Hey! It suits me perfectly! If I'm here, it's only because..."

Shintaro shut his mouth immediately, while his cheeks stained a shameful red. Why did he speak so much? He tried to regain composure as spluttering:

"Be...Because I don't want Momo start to flirting with boys! I'm her big brother! I'm responsible for her!"

"Well... It seems like I influence the others, finally! I even make you protecting your sister!"

"You know, it's not like I didn't care at all about her..."

His interlocutor cocked her head to one side, like for encourage him to keep going.

"You know, after our father's death, I became the "Man of the house". It was me who went to school to get Momo, who helped her with her homework... Well, it doesn't mean that I did it cheerfully, but still..."

"One day, at school, a boy has annoyed her, and I went to explain with him..."

"You get in a fight for your sister?" Said her friend, impressed

"Well... In fact, I told him to stop annoying Momo. He said that I had nothing to tell to him, and I answered that I was older than him. It seems like he took it for a fight proposal, since he gave me a punch in the nose and I've come back to home with blood dripping."

Ayano could not restrain a laugh.

"You gave me the confirmation that it was really you!"

"Yeah, and Momo can't taking me seriously anymore!" Said Shintaro, smiling despite himself.

The two continued to walk side by side, without saying anything. Their conversation seemed to have relaxed the young man and their step was a bit livelier, though insufficient to catch up their comrades who were walking about fifty yards. Their conversation's echoes and their laughs that reached them seemed far away, unintelligible for them because they preferred using their intellectual faculties for searching a conversation topic instead of spying others ones.

Definitely short of idea, Shintaro turned to Ayano. She stared at the ground, her face rendered invisible by her dark brown ticks, so he could only see that she nipped her lower lips. Suddenly, she looked up and said simply:

"The weather is beautiful, today!

Embarrassed that she caught him as he looked at her, he stammered quickly:

"Wha... Wha-at ?"

She had a strange glance, mixing embarrassment, apology, and perhaps a hint of amusement. Her cheeks became red, surely of shamefulness. She looked at the ground, apologizing:

"I'm sorry; I think I've stated the worst conversation topic ever. Time pass, but I keep my biggest problem: my stupidity!"

They stayed a few second without saying anything, in an awkward silence, until Ayano looked up, smiled again and finally added:

"We should join the others... Plus, Takane and Shuuya probably going to say that we flirt if we stay together for too long!"

And, without waiting for her friend's answer, she started to run... But she stumbled on a badly paved part of the pavement and fell on the ground.

"Your biggest problem is your lack of attention" said Shintaro. "Come on." He added while taking her hand for helping her to get up.

Smiling again, Ayano rushed while still holding the hand of her friend.

While still holding his hand...

"Don't say ANYTHING, whatever happens, DON'T SAY ANYTHING! Stay cool, Shintaro, she just have lead you by the hand, it mean NOTHING in any romantical perspective, it's something absolutely normal between two friends, so don't blush like an idiot...".

His friend ran without turning back for looking at him, so he didn't know if she was embarrassed or not. He knew only that, she was embarrassed or not, she would always show her face illuminated by her joyful smile.

She was always smiling, hiding her real feelings. Shintaro, his face red, couldn't consider that she didn't feel awkward with a situation like this. For a very simple reason.

They knew each others for almost two years (not counting the years Ayano spent in the Heat Haze), but it was the first time they were so close.

During seconds that, for Shintaro, looked like eternity (but a very pleasant eternity), they ran and joined the others the Mekakushi-Dan members. Takane welcomed them by saying, half-amused, half-tenderized:

"Two lovebird separate during two years that happily flirt while not giving a dawn about their friends and family reaction! Isn't it so cute ?"

"Takane, please..." Reply Ayano, blushing again, but way more lightly than with Shintaro. She came nearer to her friend for whispering into her ear: "I know others lovebirds which has been separeted during two years and..."

"What is the matter ?" Asked Haruka, next to Takane.

"No-nothing ! Also, why do you ask me that ? Let me talking with my friend!" exclaimed Takane with embarrassement

Just next to them, Momo reproached his lack of exercise to her big brother, without even noticing his close contact with Ayano.

"I don't have fans for training me to run all over the town!" Replied Shintaro.

"To run all other the town? How did you know this"

"Er, well, er... I was reading informations topic and, purely by coincidence, I found an article of august 15th, that said you had be seen running all over the town, purchased by your fans, with a little boy..."

"You stalk me ? I'm old enought for taking care of myself!"

"I wasn't stalking you! It was purely a coincidence..."

"A little boy? I am twelve!" Added Hibiya, momentarily freeing himself from his contemplation of Hiyori for correcting journalists's monumental mistake of takes him for a child.

All these sentences, said indiscriminately, caused them forgetting the hand by hand arrival of the two young poeples.

It is slightly strange when you know that, during this sweltering summer day, a long time passed before Ayano and Shintaro release their hands.