"Saya-Chan?" The teacher called out Saya's name while taking attendance. No reply.

"Saya-Chan?" Again, no reply. I looked over my shoulder at the desk behind me where Saya usually sits, only to find it empty. Then, the teacher took notice of her absence. "Is Saya-Chan here today?"

"I don't think so, Sensei. I didn't see her this morning." Ayato said from his seat, which was behind Saya's. Ayato and Saya had been friends since they were kids so i'm sure he would know why she was not in class. But, to my surprise, he didn't say anything else. Had Saya not told him why she was gone? That was very unusual of her. This worried me a little.

"Maybe she's sick." I overheard Julius whisper to Ayato from her desk next to his. "I hope she's alright."

"I'm sure she's fine." Ayato replied. But, I could tell by his tone he was just as worried as Julius and I were about her. "Maybe after classes, we can see if we can find her. Want to do that?"

"Sure." Julius replied.

"Can I come too?" I announced, springing out of my chair.

"K-Kirin…" Ayato mumbled, looking over my shoulder.

"What?" I asked, tilting my head.

"Uhhh… Kirin?" I heard the teacher's voice call my name.

That's when I realized what I had done. I had just literally jumped out of my chair and shouted at the top of my lungs right in the middle of class.

"S-Sorry!" I mumbled, my face bright red. I slowly sat back down, burying my face in my arms on the desk. That's when the whispers started. Ugh, why did I just have that sudden outburst? I'm usually a very quiet and polite girl, so why did I-

The bell rang.

"Finally!" Yabuki yawned, stretching. He dashed out of classroom, gone in the blink of an eye. But, I remained in place, not moving. For some reason I couldn't get Saya out of my mind…

"Kirin?" I felt someone tap my head. I looked up to see Julius. "You okay?"

"Oh, hey Julius. Yeah, i'm fine." I replied, standing up. "Just thinking…"

"Oh, that's good." Julius said. "Ayato-Kun and I were just about too-"

"Hey, Julius?" I cut her off. There was something I had been thinking of for the past several weeks and I needed to know if my suspicions were correct. "Can I ask you something?"

"Sure, anything. What is it?"

"Are you and Ayato-Kun dating?"

"..."

Silence. And then…

"EH!?" Julius shrieked, her face turning the same color as her hair.

"Be quiet, you two. I've had enough yelling for one day. I'm gonna get a headache." Sensei scolded us, folding up some papers. "Now, if you could, please continue your conversation outside off my room. Good day!"

Once Julius, Ayato-Kun and I were in the hallway, walking to our next class, I brought up the topic again.

"So, as I was saying…"

I trailed off, looking at Julius. She kept mouthing things like: "Please don't!" or "Don't say it!" or even, once or twice, "Shut up!". But, I needed to know this, so…

"Ayato-Kun?"

"Hm?" He grunted, in the middle of taking a sip of water from his water bottle.

I asked the question. It was a bad move.

"Cough! Cough!" Ayato spat out his water, choking on it. The suddenness of my question was just too much. I know I should have kept my mouth shut. Once he had calmed down, Ayato looked at me directly, halting his footsteps. "W-Why would you ask s-such a thing, K-Kirin?"

He stuttered. Julius lost her cool. Those were both signs that maybe my thoughts were correct. Or maybe I had just embarrassed the hell out of them. One of the two.

"O-Of course were not d-d-d…" Ayato couldn't finish his last word, so Julius finished it for him, stuttering all the way of course.

"D-d-dating..."

"Y-Yeah, that's the w-word I was looking f-for. T-Thanks, J-Julius."

"Y-Your welcome…" Julius smiled, blushing and looking at the floor.

The two of them then dashed off, leaving me behind. I decided to skip classes, god only knows why though. I never skip. NEVER! I am a top student and care very, veryyy much about my grades, but for some reason, I had to find Saya.

Saya… Saya… Saya…

How come she was the only priority on my mind? Ugh, whatever! I might as well find her. Maybe then i'll figure out why she is so important to me right now. I looked for hours, searching every possible place Saya could be. Alas, I had no luck. She was nowhere to be found. Not even in her dorm. Where could she-

"Oi! Kirin!" I heard a voice behind me call, footsteps approaching. I turned around to see Yabuki dashing towards me, looking very eager for some reason. I groaned and rolled my eyes. Not now.

"What do you want, Yabuki-Kun?" I said with as much annoyance as possible. I crossed my arms and closed my eyes, trying to make myself look as pissed off as possible. Maybe then he would get the bright idea to fuck off! That is, if I didn't cut him to bits first…

"Trying to find Saya-Chan, are you?"

That caught my attention. I opened my eyes and looked at him, letting my arms fall to my side. Of course he would know i'm looking for Saya. He knows everything… Somehow. Even if he sucks at school work, he's the best info broker there is. Maybe he could help me find… Saya… For some reason, every time I thought of Saya, I couldn't help but feel lonely… What was this feeling? Well, no time to think on it. Back to the matter at hand.

"Do you know where she is?" I asked, even though I already knew what the answer was.

"Yes, of course. I'll tell you… For a price." Yabuki snickered. I should have know.

"What do you want this time?"

"Oh, nothing much. Just this…" He reached into his pocket and pulled out what looked to be a photograph. He handed it to me. My eyes widened. The picture was of… Claudia!?

"W-Wha…" I couldn't think of anything to say. Did he seriously have a thing for her, of all people? I couldn't help but blush… A lot! "U-Uhh…"

"Yeah, I have a crush on Claudia. Anything wrong with that?" Yabuki asked, scratching the back of his head.

"N-No! Not at all…" I stuttered. Best to keep on his good side. Then, i'll have a much better shot at getting the info. "S-So… You want me too-

"Ask her if she'll go on date with me, yes." Yabuki finished my sentence for me. "Please, I can't bring myself to do it and you too seem pretty close friends and all so I figured-"

"I-I'll do it!"

Sure, Claudi and I are great friends, but I seriously doubt she would go out with someone like Yabuki, but i'll give it a go anyways. Who knows? Maybe she'll accept the offer… Nah, that would never happen! … Right…? Anyways, back to the matter at hand. No time for getting lost in my own thoughts now.

"Seriously?" Yabuki smiled. I nodded. "Gee, thanks Kirin. I knew I could count on you. Now then, for the info. I saw Saya down by the river under the bridge not too long ago. She may still be there."

I thanked him and made my way to that exact location. By the time I got there, it was already sunset, but, sure enough, I saw Saya there. She was curled up in a ball on the ground, skipping rocks through the water. I felt so happy to see that little blue-haired girl again. Even though we're both short and the almost the same height, me being only a inch or two taller than Saya, I still see her as little. I made my way over to her.

"Saya-Chan?" I stopped a few inches behind her, hovering above. She looked up and saw me, then looked back towards the river. "I've been looking for you all day."

Still, she said nothing. I awkwardly sat down next to her. She wasn't like this usually. Sure she was a quiet girl, but this was a bit too much, even for her. Saya just sighed, skipping another rock.

"Come on, Saya-Chan, please talk to me. Whats wrong?" I was getting a little irritated, but kept my calm. Something must be really bothering her so it would be best to approach her slowly.

"... Nothing…" She mumbled, burying her face into her knees. "Just… Leave me alone…"

I scooted a little closer. She scooted away.

"No, something is definitely wrong. Please tell me what it is, Saya-Chan. I can help."

"No you can't… You wouldn't understand…"

Again, I moved closer and, again, she moved farther away. What was up with her?

"Saya-Chan…!" I grabbed her by her arm, forcing her to look at me. I had had enough. But, that was a mistake. Tears were rolling down Saya's cheeks, her eyes blotched red. When did Saya ever cry? Never… So, this must be really bad…

I opened my mouth to say something, but then closed it and shook my head, deciding against it. No, now was not the time for words. Actions were needed. Very tenderly and very caringly, I wiped the tears off of Saya's face. Now that I was up close like this, our faces mere inches apart, I noticed just how cute she was… Wait, did I just… No way! I can't possibly swing that way! Yet my body moved off its own accord. As my mind screamed "NO!" over and over again, my body kept saying "Yes…". And then… I kissed Saya…

Her expression went from shocked, to confused, to acceptance within a matter of seconds. She… Was letting this happen? She wasn't pushing me away? She wasn't screaming something like "WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU DOING!?" or just in plain general stopping me in any way? Then, I felt her tongue dart into my mouth. Oh my god! Now things were getting more heated… And perverted. Not only had my first kiss been taken, but so had my first french kiss. What was going to be taken away from me next, my v-v-v… NO! NOT THAT! ANYTHING BUT THAT!

Finally, we both needed to breath, and Saya pulled away, smiling. She was clearly enjoying herself.

"Thanks…" She mumbled, pressing her forehead against mine.

My body was limp. I couldn't move. I was physically and mentally stunned by what had just happened. My mind raced all over the place, trying to figure out what the hell to say or do. Then, I found the answer… I was in love with Saya, a girl no less. I'm not sure when it started or how it started, but I know one thing, and that's for damn sure: That my love for Saya is true and pure. When Saya finally decided to speak, after giving me plenty of time, minutes actually, to calm down of course, I noticed just how different she was to me now. She was no longer my friend or even my best friend, she was my crush now. Her voice sounded like an angel, she looked like a goddess, and her touch was as soft as snow. Wow. It's amazing how different someone can appear to you once you realize you have feelings for them.

And that's when I learned the story. The reason behind Saya's sudden disappearance.

"I had a crush on Ayato. I was going to tell him today, as a matter of fact." Saya explained, looking at the ground, her hair blocking her eyes. "That's when I found out the truth… He's already taken. Him and Julius are a couple..."

So they lied to me, eh? I'll have to have a talk with them later. Still though, it's understandable.

"I spotted Ayato under a tree earlier and was making my way over to him when I realized he wasn't alone. He was with Julius… And they were… Kissing…" She went on. "I was in a state of total defeat. I couldn't bring myself to accept the fact that he was with someone else. I ran here, hiding from everyone else. I thought that maybe if I just shut everything away, things would turn out different. And, of course, they didn't. I was such an idiot…"

She didn't say anything else.

"Saya-Chan…" I mumbled, grabbing her chin and making her look at me. "I…"

What I said next… I couldn't believe I said it. I never thought the day would come when I would confess to someone. Whats even more shocking is it was a girl I was saying it to and I didn't even know I had feelings for her until the same day… But… That didn't matter now. What mattered was what I was about to say. And I said it, with all my heart.

I love you.

And then I kissed her and she kissed me back.

…

The next day, Saya and I explained everything to all of our friends. Oh, and it was especially fun to watch Ayato's and Julius's reactions when we told them we knew they were dating. It was hilarious! Giggle… Anyways,-

"Kirin…"

Oh, look who's here...

I turned around to see Saya, a chocolate bar in her mouth. As you may have guessed, we're girlfriends now. I wonder how this will turn out. Giggle.

"Oh, hey Saya-Chan~" I greeted her, making sure to put as much emphasis on her name as possible. That name had a whole new meaning to me now. "Morning."

"Morning…" She mumbled, blushing slightly. I guess she wasn't used to this whole new couple thing yet. But that's okay. She'll get used to it with time.

"Oi! Saya-Chan! Kirin!" Ayato called to us, a dozen feet away or so. "You're going to be late if you don't hurry up!"

"Yeah! See you in class!" Julius added. As they walked away, they slipped their hands into one another's grasps. They no longer needed to hide their true feelings. I smiled to myself.

"Ugh, I just remembered I have to do something today…" I groaned, remember my promise with Yabuki.

"Whatever it is, i'll help you with it, Kirin." Saya said, smiling sweetly.

"You sure? Its pretty lame." I giggled.

"Yeah, i'm sure."

"Okay, if you say so- Saya-Chan?"

Saya grabbed my sleeve, preventing me from entering the school. I looked back at her to see her with a small piece of the chocolate bar in her mouth, her eyes dead set on me. Locked with mine.

"I-I lowve youw…" Her words were a little distorted because of the chocolate, but the message got through to me clearly. I blushed slightly, then embraced her.

"I love you too…" I whispered in her ear, visibly sending a shiver down her spine. Oh man, I could so get used to this. I might even get addicted to her. Oh wait, I already am. Silly me! Giggle…

I waited for a few seconds for her to let go, but she kept clinging on to me like her life depended on it. I looked at her, perplexed. She pressed the piece of chocolate against my lips with her mouth. I understood what she wanted. Still in a tight hug, I opened my mouth, allowing Saya to slip the chocolate in my mouth. And then we kissed. And kissed. And kissed…

Saya's lips were so sweet. They tasted like chocolate~ 3