a/n: someone on tumblr gave me this prompt, thank you! my kumirei inspiration had been a bit lacking ever since clexa filled me with determination and spite but i think it's mostly back now

also this was the first time i wrote shuichi as Not Terrible and it was a very weird experience that i don't plan on going through again

Kumiko was glad, to say the least, that Shuichi was a decent human being who had listened to what she had to say. It was middle school, she remembered, and after one particularly uncomfortable encounter, Kumiko had simply looked him in the eye and told him that she liked girls before walking away with a "hmph" she had reserved only for the people she wasn't afraid of alienating (and that wasn't very many people, to be honest, considering how much she feared rejection and abandonment). Since then, she had found a somewhat understanding (if a bit clueless) friend in him, one she could vent to about the pretty cashier she had seen at the convenience store, or her latest crush, or the injustice of character deaths on television.

It was on this day in particular, when the two of them were attempting to make polite small talk, that Kumiko saw Reina walking across the rainy sidewalk with her head held high, trumpet case in hand.

"H-hey, Reina!" she yelled, waving and practically jumping out to greet the other girl. Reina took a brief look at her, gave a nod, and then turned to Shuichi with a hardened stare.

"Kumiko?" he whispered. "Your friend's scaring me."

"Uh, she's actually more like my-"

"You see me as her friend?" Reina interrupted, stepping towards Shuichi as she clenched and unclenched her free fist. "Gal pal?" Shuichi stumbled backwards. "Platonic bestie, perhaps?" Kumiko couldn't help but snort at Reina saying the word bestie, despite the situation.

"Hey, uh, Reina?" she mumbled, trying to break up the tension.

"Yes?"

"It's n-nothing important, I just, uh, I think that I need to go now, that's all!" Kumiko snatched up her bag from the stone sculpture and tried to run away as fast as she could, only to find herself slipping and falling into a puddle.

"Kumiko!" Reina turned her attention away from Shuichi to race towards the other girl, who at the moment was holding her knee and wincing. "Kumiko, are you alright?"

"Ow . . . y-yeah, I'm okay." Kumiko stood up on shaky legs, dripping wet from both the rain and the puddle. Reina bent down to look at her leg.

"You're injured."

"It's j-just a scratch, Reina, you don't need to worry about it."

"You're bleeding, Kumiko. It could get infected." Kumiko picked up her bag and started to walk away again, unwilling to make the situation any worse than it already was. Even if she wanted to lean on the other girl, however badly, she pushed away the thought and kept on limping. Reina refused to leave her side, however.

"I'm f-fine."

"Walk without seeming like a half-dead cat, and I'll believe you."

"B-believe me, Reina, I'm okay."

"You could get hurt, Kumiko, do you think I want that?"

"Hey, you two!" Kumiko and Reina both turned to face Shuichi, who was still standing under the roof with a somewhat confused expression. "Both of you are gonna get colds if you keep on standing out in the rain like that!"

"We're fine," Reina sharply replied, tensing as she helped Kumiko walk.

"Y-you just said-"

"You told me that it was just a scratch. I believe you. We don't need his help, I assume."

Kumiko didn't think over the encounter until the following week, when she had begrudgingly agreed to what she called a "Feelings Talk" with Shuichi. Feelings Talks, on principle, mostly consisted of the two of them rambling about their own personal lives at the same time, not really listening to whatever the other had to say but still trying to understand. It usually didn't end very well, yet Shuichi still continued with them. Kumiko didn't know why for the life of her, admittedly, but they were a good time for venting.

"The classes have been getting harder-"

"I k-keep on thinking about middle school-"

"Band practice is just so much more rigorous nowadays-"

"She's so amazing but I'm scared that she'll leave if I get too close-"

"Your friend is going to get crushed by her tuba someday-"

"I don't know why it's these dumb little things that set me off-"

"Kumiko."

"Eh?"

"Are you free tomorrow?" Reina stood in the doorway to the diner, shaking out her umbrella as she leaned in towards Kumiko.

"You know, Kousaka," Shuichi began, twirling an unopened straw in his fingers. "Most people would think it's sort of rude to ask someone out on a date while they're out with a friend." Kumiko felt her cheeks flush and ducked beneath the table in a feeble attempt to hide her embarrassment. A date?! She's asking me out on a date?! And Shuichi's trying to be some kind of wingman? "Of course, if you think this is a date . . ." Shuichi turned to give Kumiko a wink. She mimicked gagging at the thought. A flash of concern crossed Reina's face.

"Kumiko? Is this a date?" Kumiko was just about to throw up at the thought.

"Blah, of course not! In c-case you haven't noticed, Reina, I'm a lesbian. A big ole' gay. Homosexual. A-" It was only at this point that Kumiko noticed that Shuichi had left. "W-where'd he go?"

"Is that something of your concern?" Reina was looking directly into Kumiko's eyes now, the world slowing to a standstill outside.

"Reina?"

"I said, is that something of your concern? Are you, Kumiko Oumae, romantically interested in Shuichi Tsukamoto?"

"I just told you, Reina! I d-don't like Shuichi like that, in fact, I was just talking to him about you!" Reina paused for a moment, allowing Kumiko to register what she had just said. Crap. Crap. Crap.

"Well, this is certainly a turn of events."

"Is it?" Shuichi piped up.

"Why're you still here?" Kumiko muttered.

"Regardless," Reina sighed, dismissing Shuichi with a wave of her hand. "I suppose that this turned out fairly well, considering the fact that this was the reason I followed you here in the first place."

"W-what?"

"Kumiko, I wasn't expecting to say this at such an awkward time, with . . . him watching, but I like you. In a romantic sense, I should add. The confessions of love were not mere declarations of friendship." Kumiko blinked.

"This isn't a t-trick, right? I'm not going to step outside and see a bunch of grinning TV people with cameras laughing in my face?"

"No. I'm asking you out, Kumiko. If you feel otherwise, then of course-" Kumiko stopped Reina mid-sentence, fumbling to form a coherent sentence.

"Reina, listen, I've p-pretty much been repeating myself for the past two minutes! I like you too! I've been talking with Shuichi about this for months, that's why I was here in the first place!"

"It's true," Shuichi added. "She won't shut up about you, Kousaka." Kumiko turned red for the second time that day, feebly attempting to hide her pink cheeks in her hands.

"I'll, uh, see you tomorrow, then?" Kumiko barely managed to squeak out. Reina nodded, clasped Kumiko's hand in her own, and walked away without another word.

"What a girl," Shuichi breezily sighed. Kumiko shot him a glare.