My phone rings incessantly for the fourth time, dragging me awake. I finally decide to pick it up. Groggy, I answer, "Whaaaaat…?"

"Sumia! What the hell, did you just wake up?!"

Too much yelling...so early… "What do you waaaaant, Cordeliaaa…? It'ssoo early…"

"What are you-? Do you know what time it is?!" Cordelia shrieks. I pull the phone away from my ear, cringing.

"Uhh...5 a.m.?"

"It's 8:25! Did you forget about the trip?"

It takes me a little bit to connect the dots. But when I do, I snap awake. "...Oh shit! I'm so fucking late, fuck, I can't miss this!"

"That's what I'm trying to say! Get your ass in gear and come here! I'll try to stall!" With that, Cordelia hangs up.

After rushing my morning routine and wishing my mom woke me up earlier-she said she tried, but I'd ignored it-I run off the bus and race to school. Somehow, I don't slip and fall on the snow when I make it to the front gate...only to see that the coach bus has gone. I drop my duffel bag in defeat. Sighing, I lean against the black bars of the school gate and check the time on my phone: 9:13. I open a text Cordelia sent a few minutes ago:

[From: Sassy Delia]

[Received: 9:09 a.m.]

[Mia girl I'm so sorry...I delayed as much as I could :(]

I sigh and send a text back.

[To: Sassy Delia]

[Sent: 9:14 a.m.]

[It's okay I guess...thanks though]

[From: Sassy Delia]

[Received: 9:14 a.m.]

[What are you gonna do?]

[To: Sassy Delia]

[Sent: 9:15 a.m.]

[I don't know...I feel dumb]

Just then, I get a text from Chrom, my crush.

[From: Chrom ]

[Received: 9:15 a.m.]

[Hey Sumia, it looks like you can't come to the senior trip. I'm sorry about that, I was looking forward to spending more time with you over the next few days :(]

Fuuuuuuck. Stupid Sumia!

[To: Chrom ]

[Sent: 9:16 a.m.]

[Me too...keep me updated?]

[From: Chrom ]

[Received: 9:16 a.m.]

[Definitely I'll call tonight?]

I giggle at his answer, when a low cough startles me. I look up to see a bundled up Lon'qu staring at me from a yard away. He's wearing a red infinity scarf with a dark blue jacket that looks really cozy with black skinny jeans and high-top sneakers. Immediately flustered, I greet, "O-oh hey, Lon'qu!" Even though we're in the same class, we barely interact. The rare times we do, it's always awkward. Lon'qu grunts in response. I take a few steps toward him, but he stiffens and backs up. Right. He avoids women like the plague. "Sorry," I call. Lon'qu grunts again. I'll take that as an "It's cool." Noting his bookbag, I say, "Oh, you missed the senior trip too?"

Lon'qu's eyebrows furrow. "What? No," he finally speaks. "I had no intention of going." Wow, is your voice that deep? I never noticed.

"Then what's with the bookbag?"

The teen looks at me like I'm crazy. "I'm...going to school." I ask why. He scoffs. "To learn. I have no reason to skip."

"You do realize that most of the senior class is on the trip, right?" He begrudgingly answers yes. "So, you know that you're gonna be like the only kid in class, right?"

Lon'qu rolls his eyes. "And?"

"Why don't you just...not go today?" One of the few things I know about him is that he never misses school. I heard that he was really sick once sophomore year, but he came to all his classes anyway. Just like Cordelia. I wish I was as dedicated.

Lon'qu gasps. "Me? Skip school? And do what?"

I shrug. "Hang out...with me?" My face burns at the suggestion. So does Lon'qu's. He stutters a why. I approach him again. He doesn't move away this time, though he does flinch. "Well...I don't really know you, and I don't wanna go home…"

After a long silence, he sighs. "Fine. I'll...hang out with you today."

"IHOP, really?" Lon'qu stares at the classic blue sign. Few cars are in the parking lot today.

I reach to grab his hand, but I chastise myself and put my hand back into my jacket pocket. I sheepishly say, "Yeah, I didn't really eat this morning." I take a quick glance at him. "I guess you already did, of course…"

Lon'qu shakes his head. "It's fine. I'll eat something."

I beam. "Yayyy!" I throw my hands up and run into the restaurant, Lon'qu scolding me.

"Sumia!" he reprimands once we're inside. Oh, he remembers my name.

I laugh. "What? No one's here." He looks around, noting that there is only an old couple in the far corner. A pink-haired bubbly waitress with dark circles under her blue eyes comes up to us with a greeting.

"So it's just the two of you?" I nod. "How cute," she comments. "Would you like a booth?"

"Yes please!" I reply. The waitress smiles and leads us to a big booth against the window. Handing us two menus, she tells us that her name is Felicia and she'll come back in a few for drinks. "What are you thinking of getting?" I ask Lon'qu excitedly the second she leaves us alone.

He shrugs off his bookbag and jacket, revealing a red turtleneck underneath. "Hm...water is enough."

"Nooo, I mean like to eat!"

He snorts. "We just got here."

"Yeah, but don't you have a go-to food whenever you come here?"

Lon'qu meets my eyes, but blushes and looks down at the menu, flipping the laminated pages. "I wouldn't know...I've never been to an IHOP before."

I gasp dramatically. "What?!" The old couple from across the room look over at us, startled. I lower my voice. "Really?" He nods. "Like your friends don't drag you here after school or on the weekends for like brunch or something?" He says no. "What about your fencing team?"

At that, Lon'qu looks up at my hands, but still avoids my gaze. "How'd you know about that?"

I shrug. "I went to one of the home matches before. To cheer on Cordelia. I saw that you were practicing." I refrain from adding, You looked so cool.

"O-oh. I didn't...notice." I tell him that it's chill. Lon'qu opens his mouth to say something more, but Felicia returns and asks if we're ready to order. He raises an eyebrow to let me go first. I promptly say that I'd like a toasted marshmallow hot chocolate and the caramel bon bon pancake combo. Felicia's smile widens at my choices as she scribbles them down on her notepad.

She turns to the boy across from me. "And you, young man?"

Lon'qu's cheeks redden at the sudden attention. "W-well...water, please."

"Aand what would you like to eat?"

Lon'qu nervously flips through the menu and points at it. "This ham and egg melt please? W-with onion rings!" My mouth begins to salivate at the thought of onion rings. Felicia writes it down with a nod. She takes our menus and tells us that the drinks will be out shortly. Lon'qu and I say thanks as she leaves again. I giggle. "What?" he asks.

"You're so cute. Blushing and stuttering while ordering."

"She took me by surprise!" I laugh more. "I mean you were so confident ordering yours!"

I finally take off my jacket and fix my off-shoulder mint green top. "I go to IHOP all the time though."

"Whatever!" Lon'qu pouts and crosses his arms.

"Whoa dude, it's not that serious." I keep my tone light.

He sighs. "I know…" We lapse into a tense silence until Felicia comes back with the drinks and updates us on the food. My eyes widen at the mug placed in front of me. Felicia put a ton of whipped cream and cocoa powder. Taking a spoon, I scoop up some whipped cream and eat it, but I start coughing immediately. "Sumia, are you okay?!" Lon'qu asks, ready to leap out of his seat.

"Yeah no," I say between coughs, "it's fine, just...a lot of powder."

Lon'qu takes his own spoon and dips it into the whipped cream. "Don't be so reckless. I'll help you." He brings it to his mouth. I give him a look. "What is it now?"

"Was that just an excuse to try out the hot chocolate?" A silly grin forms on my face.

Lon'qu scoffs. "Psh. No. How dare you think that?" I raise an eyebrow. "Stop."

"Do you wanna try my hot chocolate?" The grin gets wider.

Lon'qu gets all shy. "...Only if you can't finish it."

"Oh, I can finish it, no problem about that." I take another scoop of the whipped cream. "But let's take care of this first." I wink at him, laughing at the way his face burns up.

Lon'qu and I are at a bus stop near IHOP, sitting on the bench. My duffel bag is on the ground by my feet. Lon'qu is on the opposite end of the bench. "Where to next?" he asks.

"How's the bowling alley? We can bowl for a bit. It has some arcade games too. You've been there, right?"

"Sure," is his gruff answer. I want to say more, but a crowded bus pulls up and he ushers me to get on. On board, we make our way toward the back. I'm hoping that there would be more available seats, but there's only one spot: the middle of a five-seater. Lon'qu tells me to sit, that he'd be fine with standing, when the bus goes over a bump and jostles all the passengers. Clumsy that I am, I fall back into Lon'qu. Before I can even regain my footing, he pushes me away harshly.

"Ow," I say. He curses under his breath.

"Just sit before it happens again." Alright, damn. I plop down on the seat with my bag on my lap, and he stands some ways from me, grabbing a pole. He shrugs off his bookbag to make more room for others. Frowning, I look at him throughout the ride. He must feel my gaze, but he doesn't look back at me. In fact, he rummages through his bag and takes out a little book and starts reading! Didn't think he was the type. Since he's thoroughly enthralled in the book, I never get the courage to strike up a conversation. I try to see what the book's title is, but he's too far away. I fiddle with my phone in the meantime, checking for any new texts.

[From: Sassy Delia]

[Received: 10:34 a.m.]

[This bus ride is so boring without you :(]

[From: Chrom ]

[Received: 10:42 a.m.]

[I just saw a wild deer. I thought of you for some reason...]

[From: Fred]

[Received: 10:52 a.m.]

[Sumia, unfortunately since you're unable to join us on the senior trip, I suggest you take your own mini vacation today. But don't forget about your meditation.]

There are a few more with similar messages. I smile at them all. I look up and notice Lon'qu's eyes are fixed on me. His eyes narrow at my phone. I open my mouth to say something about it, but I realize that our stop is here. I get up, making sure that I don't trip this time, and Lon'qu grabs his bag and follows me off the bus back into the cold winter air.

Lon'qu shakes his head after I strike a turkey. "How are you so good?" he questions. We're at the final round of the game. I'm ahead by forty-six points.

"I'm on the bowling team." He asks how long. "Since freshman year."

"I heard that you were on the swimming team…"

I blush. So you do know something about me. "Yeah, but I'm an alternate so Coach says it's fine to join the bowling team. It's only a fall sport anyway." Lon'qu nods at my answer. I keep my distance from him. I remind that it's his turn now. He strides towards the lane and picks up a heavy purple ball. It's the same ball he's been using this whole time. I cheer him on, even though he already told me it messes with his concentration. Lon'qu stands still for a moment, ignoring me. Then, he walks towards the pins, pulling his right arm back, and lets the ball fly down the lane. He gets eight pins down, leaving him with a 7-10 split. "You got this!" I say encouragingly at his back. Lon'qu rolls his shoulders and bowls again. Gutterball. He lets out a loud grunt and returns, defeated. "Hey, hey, it's okay. There's always next time." I smile to reassure him.

Lon'qu sighs and sits at a step some ways from my seat, taking off his bowling shoes. "We've already played two games. It's fine."

"Another day then," I mutter under my breath. Lon'qu doesn't say anything. Hopefully he didn't hear that. Following suit, I change back into my fur boots. The dark-haired teen waits for me patiently, jacket slung over his arm. When I'm done, we return the shoes at the counter and head for the arcade area. "What do you wanna do?" I ask. "There's hoops, the crane, the thing where you throw balls into holes, whack-a-mole, Dance Dance Revolution…" I trail off. I turn to face Lon'qu, but he's already making a bee-line for the dancing game. "Hey wait up!" I run after him. He's shoving quarters into the coin slot. "Lon'qu?"

He stops mid-insert and looks at me with wide eyes. He looks...giddy. "I really...want to play this."

"Great! I'll play with you." I step up onto the the mini stage and start putting quarters into my slot.

"What, no you don't-"

"No, don't worry. I love this game!" I grin and set my stuff down. The game starts up and we're bombarded with songs to choose from and what difficulty. "How good are you?"

Lon'qu blushes a deep red. "Whoa no, I'm not...that good."

I nod. "So hard? That's cool, but there're only a few songs I'm decent on hard." I use the buttons on the gamepad to scroll through the song list.

"Sumia, I'm not that crazy about-"

"So you didn't just run to this game, practically throwing quarters at it?" I cock my head in knowing.

Lon'qu's blush spreads to his ears. "You got me."

I chuckle and step aside to let him choose. "You don't have to hide your interests from me. I do want to get to know you, after all." Lon'qu looks at me, his dark brown eyes bright, but he doesn't say anything. He turns to face the screen and picks out a song called "Movin on Without You" by Utada Hikaru. He asks if it's okay. Judging from the song preview, it's pretty upbeat. I wonder how long I'll last. "Yeah. I got this." I nod at him to click on hard. We barely have time to ready ourselves before I'm thrown off from the immediate arrow directions appearing on the screen. "Shi-!" I scramble to keep up with Lon'qu, who isn't fazed at all. I barely register the fact that the song is in Japanese, though it doesn't change how bad I'm doing. I grab the bar behind me to keep myself upright. "What the fu-?!" I start to exclaim, but Lon'qu's laugh rises over the music and it only messes my dancing up even more.

It's too long before the song actually ends and we get our scores. I get a D, though I was running very close to failing most of the song. Lon'qu gets an A, making some mistakes. I fall on my knees, coughing. Lon'qu hands me a water bottle from his bookbag and I drink half of it gratefully. I pat his hand in a show of thanks, but he recoils. "Right," I say, pulling my hand away. "Thank you."

"You up for another song?" he asks after a moment of silence.

I leap up. "Hell yeah!" I give him back his water bottle. "Sorry." Lon'qu just puts it on the floor near him. He gives me reign of the controls.

"If you want."

Blushing, I scroll through the songs and settle on my favorite one: Bumble Bee. Lon'qu snorts behind me. "Shut up, it's a classic." He stiffens. I choose the setting-medium, I know how bad it gets on hard-and take my position next to him. I smile at him to assure that my earlier comment shouldn't be taken that seriously. He relaxes a little.

"It's one of my favorites too," he replies, giving me a hint of a smile. The song starts and we go all out, humming the lyrics in unison.

Lon'qu and I saunter down the neighborhood surrounding the bowling alley in silence. But...it doesn't feel all that awkward anymore. I check my phone for any updates from my friends. Cordelia sent three spaced-out ones that detail their arrival at the resort and how she roped Chrom into going paintballing. Chrom sent me a text pleading for help...as if I was there. I chuckle at their silliness, the pang of wistfulness all too painful. But then I'm aware of Lon'qu's gaze on me and stuff my phone back into my purse. Playing with my silver hair, I glance at him. He looks away quickly, a small blush present on his face. "Sorry," I mutter. He doesn't show any indication that he heard me.

After wandering to a nearby high school campus, Lon'qu suddenly asks, "Would you like to watch a movie?"

"Sure. I wonder what movies are out right now…" I take out my phone again and check the movie listings for the AMC movie theater near our school, but I stop myself. "Wait, which movie theater do you wanna go?"

Lon'qu shrugs, hiding his mouth in his scarf. "...Does it matter?"

"Well, do you wanna sit in comfortable chairs, like in AMC, or do you prefer cheaper movie tickets?"

"...What do you want?"

I start going off a tangent about how price doesn't really matter to me at the moment-Mom gave me enough money for the three days-but I kinda wanna be cheap right now. I also go off about the quality of the two movie theaters our classmates go to most often. I usually just go to the one farthest from school, but only on Tuesdays with friends for half-price. That's why I call it movie Tuesdays. I also give Lon'qu a few other theaters we could feasibly go to. Then I start rambling about the movies off the top of my head that are out and giving him basic synopses. In the middle of my monologue, I realize way too late that I've been talking too much. I clamp a hand over my mouth in shock. "Dammit Lon'qu, why didn't you shut me up!"

He furrows his eyebrows. Surprisingly, he understood what I just said. "I don't mind hearing you talk," he says, earning a blush from me.

Unable to counter that well, I say, "That's not the point! You choose; you've been doing whatever I want so far today."

Taken aback, he blurts, "I'd like to go to see The Little Prince." His eyes are wide, almost afraid of my reaction. I don't know what to say, so I just ask if that was the book he was reading earlier. A bright red blush emits from his cheeks and he answers, "Y-yes." His eyes evade mine. "I wanted to brush up on the story before seeing the movie."

I want to aww and say that's so cute, but I know that he'll take it the wrong way, so instead I say, "Alright, let's go!"

Back on the bus, I find two empty adjacent seats in the front. I sit down on one and pat the seat next to me. Lon'qu shakes his head, blushing. "I'm not gonna bite."

His face becomes a bright red. "I know…"

"Literally, the bus is practically empty." It's actually half-full, but everyone's mostly in the back. Lon'qu rolls his eyes and sits down on the edge of the seat. I make sure we're not touching out of respect. He takes out that small book again. I lean over a little. He tenses up, but doesn't say anything. He lets me glimpse the front cover. It's of a little blond boy standing on...the moon or something, looking at the starry sky. I ask him what page he's on. In response, he flips to the middle of the book. I scan the page, not understanding a word. Confused, I rub my eyes. The words are still unrecognizable. What the… "Lon'qu...this isn't English, right…?"

His eyes shift side to side. "No. It's, uh, French."

"French?!" I shriek, earning glares from everyone in the bus. I lower my voice. "What?"

"Okay it's really dumb but the original text is clearly better at grasping the emotions and the meaning the author was tryi-"

I cut him off. "You know French?"

Lon'qu hides his mouth in his scarf again, but his blush is still obvious. "Yes," is his muffled reply.

"Wow, like, fluently?" I barely give him time to react before adding, "Do your parents speak French too? Ohmygod, are you French?"

"N-n-no," he stutters before inching away from me. I notice too late that I put a hand on his arm. Embarrassed, I place it under my thigh for warmth. "I'm Japanese; I thought you knew."

"Exactly, which is why…" I can't finish my sentence.

"Yes, my parents speak French, but they're not French." I open my mouth for a comment, but Lon'qu says, "We lived in Saint-Benoît for most of my childhood. We moved here in seventh grade." My mouth hangs open in awe. He doesn't say anything more for a couple of stops. He blushes again and says, "Sorry. I don't even know why I told you…"

"That's the coolest thing I've ever heard," I blurt.

Lon'qu shakes his head. "It's not that great."

I ask, "So like...you can read that book and perfectly understand?" Lon'qu nods. Mustering up my courage, I sheepishly say, "Can you...please read it to me?"

Taken off-guard, Lon'qu looks at me with wide brown eyes. "You mean in French?"

I bite my lip. "Well...if you want to. English is okay." Shocked, he asks why. "I want to brush up on the story before we go see it," I answer, throwing his words back at him, even though I've never heard of the book in my life.

Lon'qu takes a moment to reply. His shoulders drop and he leans back to get closer to me. He turns to the first page of the book and begins reading. "Once, when I was six years old…"

Lon'qu and I walk out of the theater teary-eyed. "That...was so sweet!" we say at the same time, blushing when we notice the other's puffy eyes. Lon'qu wipes my tears away and I can only stand there, feeling dumb as people pass by and give us weird looks. "Lon'qu, people are staring." I fish out a napkin from my purse and hand it to him. "Use this." I mean it for his eyes, but he uses them on me instead. I step away from his reach, shaking my head. "No, it's okay. Really. You're still crying. It's for you anyway." He wipes his tears away with the napkin and we go towards the bus stop in front of the theater. It's empty, so we sit at the bench together. I rest my duffel by my feet on the ground. He doesn't sit at the opposite end this time. Lon'qu asks if I'm hungry. Right then, my stomach grumbles. "Shit, we haven't eaten since this morning, right? It's dark AF," I comment. He snorts in response. "Actually, what time is it?" I move to get my phone, but the teen quickly checks his wristwatch and tells me it's 5:39 p.m. "Where do you wanna go?"

"Why me?"

I pout. "Because I chose breakfast."

Lon'qu lifts his shoulders. "I don't know...do you like Thai food?"

"Um...you know, I've been feeling some pad Thai for a while. Sure; do you have a preferred place?" He nods and I say, "Swag, lead the way."

He doesn't reply immediately, then says, "Well, the bus has to get here first." I laugh loudly, startling him. "What? What did I say?"

In between laughs, I say, "No, it was just really funny how you said it. So sarcastic, I love it!"

He smirks and answers, "You're one of the few who've said that." I giggle and we lapse into silence. It doesn't feel uncomfortable anymore. After ten minutes or so, I complain about the bus. "It's the MTA, what do you expect?" Lon'qu says jokingly.

"Ohh you think you're hot shit now 'cause I said you're funny; alright alright, I see you." Lon'qu gives me something closer to an actual laugh.

"Shut up." Feeling restless, I get up from my seat and walk over to the pile of fresh snow-it's questionable how fresh it really is, but it's still soft and clean-and I ball it up the best I can with my gloved hands. Lon'qu's eyes are on me. "Sumia? What are you doing?" I smile, glad that my back is to him. I love it when my name rolls off his tongue like that. I make sure I keep a straight face before turning around. I walk slowly towards him, holding the snowball. Lon'qu's face switches from curiosity to slight panic. "Sumia?" I throw the snowball at him, right on his knee. "Sumia!" he exclaims, getting up and brushing the snow from his jeans. "What was that for?!" I go back to the pile of snow and ball up another one and throw it at him. It hits his sneaker. "Stop that!"

"Make me!" I tease. I run down the block once Lon'qu finally gives chase. I'm laughing, chucking snowballs at him. He dodges them easily and swiftly retaliates, hitting me in the legs and back. One actually hits my neck and I squeal. I make the mistake to stop by a streetlight and try to get it off before it ruins my hair. Lon'qu throws another one at me point-blank and I have to run again. But I trip on myself and start to fall. Lon'qu yells my name and leaps to catch me. It's too late, so the best he can do is wrap his arms around me to cushion our fall. We land with a loud oof on some snow and roll a bit before stopping. Lon'qu ends up on top, pinning my arms to my sides.

"Are you okay?" he asks between heaving breaths. His face is a few inches away from mine. All I can think of is that snow is everywhere on my hair now. He lightens his grip on me.

"Y-yeah…are you?"

"That doesn't matter," is his prompt reply. I note that there's snow stuck in his hair. I move my hand slowly to brush some of it off. His eye twitches a little, but he doesn't move.

"You have freckles," I suddenly say. It's a light smattering across his nose and cheeks.

"You have a beauty mark," Lon'qu says simultaneously. We blush and giggle. Lon'qu puts a hand on my cheek, a thumb right over the mark. His dark eyes are clouded as he looks at me intensely. My face warm, I bite my lip.

One of us was this close to saying-doing-something, but a loud cough from behind Lon'qu interrupts. We look for the source. It's a bunch of middle-schoolers staring at us. Embarrassed, we get up, also fake-coughing and brushing snow off. We go back to the bus stop, but we have to pass the group of kids. When we do, Lon'qu starts saying some stuff I can't register, probably to distract me. But all I hear is a loud "oooh" and I want to cover my face. Lon'qu sucks his teeth and pulls me by the hand back to the bus stop, where the bus just arrived. He picks up my duffel as we get on the bus and head downtown. We sit in silence, our hands still together. Neither of us has the courage to mention it.

The Thai place-it's called Lemongrass-is a little crowded, but the waitress took one look at us when we walked in and found us a quiet spot in the back corner. Only then do we stop holding hands. Thankfully, it's a booth, so we put our stuff in the empty space, laughing nervously. Everything feels weird ever since the impromptu snowball fight. I try to lighten the mood by asking Lon'qu about this place. "Do you go here a lot? Is this like your spot? What drinks do you recommend? Should I really get pad Thai? Oh shit there's fried ice cream here? Is it me, or is this place fancier than you'd expect?" It has that kind of ambiance where you'd go for a really nice date, but the menu prices are cheap and Lon'qu told me on the way here that the food quality is great.

Lon'qu patiently answers all of them: yes, he goes here a lot, but he doesn't tell his friends about it. He recommends the Thai iced tea. Yes, I should still get pad Thai, that's why he brought me here. Yes, their fried ice cream is amazing. "But wait until you get the fried Oreos," he says. My eyes widen, already fantasizing about biting into the gooey Oreo goodness. "Yeah, this is a prime spot for first dates," Lon'qu comments while drinking water.

I raise my eyebrows. "Ohh? Sounds like you're talking from experience."

Lon'qu chokes a little. "U-um, well, don't you see all the couples around us?"

I blurt, "I don't want to look at the other couples. I want to look at you." What the fuck am I saying?

Lon'qu almost spits the drink out. "Y-y-you're joking...right?"

I nod my head, even though I'm just lying to the both of us. "Yeahh, sorry about that." Lon'qu breathes out a big sigh of relief. I look around at the surrounding tables and he's right: all the couples are clearly on a date, being nervous and shy. I fake a laugh and say, "Ha...you think the waitress thought we were on a date too?"

Lon'qu snorts. "No, not at all."

As I keep laughing, I wonder, Why does my heart feel like it's sinking then?

Lon'qu and I are standing outside Lemongrass, too far apart to hold hands again but close enough to look like we know each other. We're waiting for his mom to pick us up. She called earlier in the middle of dinner to check up on him and offered to pick us up once he told her where we are. We could wait inside, but it's not too cold out right now. I look around the street. "It's starting to snow again," I mutter as I focus on a lone streetlight to see white flurries falling. Lon'qu grunts to indicate he heard me. "Hey...Lon'qu?" He grunts again. "What's your favorite season?" I turn to face him. His face is buried in his scarf again, staring at the ground.

He slowly looks up at me. "Winter." I gasp. He furrows his eyebrows. "What?"

I take a step closer to him. He doesn't step back or flinch. He doesn't seem to mind me in his space so much anymore. "That's mine too! But I also love spring."

He snorts. "Should've known when you started attacking me with snowballs."

I giggle. "We should do it again." Lon'qu gives me a look I can't understand. "Do you...not want to?" I bite the inside of my cheek and cast my eyes down. In response, I get a fistful of snow on my thigh. I look back up to see a grinning Lon'qu with another snowball in hand. I ball up some snow closest to me, saying, "Oooh, you're really gonna get it." But I take only two steps when I start to slip on some ice and lose my balance. "Sh-!"

"Sumia!" Lon'qu pulls me towards him, using himself as a wall. He doesn't stumble as I fall face-first into his chest. "Are you okay?" His voice is tinged with obvious worry.

I chuckle. "You don't have to be so concerned about me, Lon'qu. This happens pretty often. Dammit, and I was doing so well before."

Lon'qu wraps his arms around me, pinning my arms to my chest. "Don't scare me so much, Sumia."

Something about how his voice softens makes me think there's something he's not telling me. Shouldn't push it though. "Haha, I'm sorry," I say to keep things lighthearted. I start to move away from him, but Lon'qu's grip isn't loosening. Instead, he moves a hand over my hair, smoothing it down. He lets out a deep, melancholic sigh. "Lon...qu…?"

"Yes?" His voice is still tender.

"I…I…" What am I going to say?

Just then, there's a loud honk from a few feet away. Startled, we spring apart, but Lon'qu doesn't push me away harshly again. His face is burning and so is mine when we turn to face a white SUV double-parked in front of the restaurant. The passenger side window is down and an intimidating-looking tanned woman with blonde hair leans over and calls, "Lon'qu honey, what are you doing? It's cold out here, get in the car!"

The woman brought Lon'qu and me to his house, the snow falling more than before. I still can't get over the fact that she's Lon'qu mom; she's so peppy and outgoing while Lon'qu broods. "So honey, you got a girlfriend?" she asks as we walk up the path to the two-story yellow house.

"Moooom noo," Lon'qu surprisingly whines from behind me. I give him a bewildered look. I've never heard him sound like that.

She puts the key in the door but gives me a once-over before opening the door and letting us in. "Too bad. She's really pretty and seems sweet." I blush at the compliment, playing with my hair.

"Moooom stop that…!" Lon'qu strides past, his face a bright red.

I follow her to the kitchen, where she puts her purse down on the ceramic island in the middle of the kitchen. "Thank you for the kind words, Mrs…" What the hell is Lon'qu's last name?

She rummages around for glasses while replying, "Oh, no need to be so formal, girl! Call me Flavia." Stunned, I look for Lon'qu, who's slumped on the living room couch. He looks over at me and shrugs. Call her just Flavia? That's too soon!

"O-okay," I slowly stammer. "Miss Flavia."

She gives me another look and smiles. "You're too cute." She turns back to getting the glasses and asks me what kind of drink I'd like. I answer with Sprite, if that's cool. Flavia snorts. "Calm down, girl, I'm not gonna interrogate you."

"Yes she is," Lon'qu calls. I look back over to see he's gotten up from the couch and has already taken off his jacket, scarf, and sneakers, shuffling around. He comes to the kitchen, takes my duffel bag, and helps me out of my jacket without me saying anything. He puts them away in the closet by the front door.

"Well can you blame me if I do? I saw what was going on at Lemongrass!"

"What happened at Lemongrass?" a booming voice asks. Everyone turns towards the stairs leading to the second floor. Coming down the stairs is a tall, burly, dark-skinned man dressed in sweatpants and a T-shirt. Startled, I stare at him with my jaw open.

"Close your mouth honey, or my husband will start thinking he's good-looking," Flavia says in a teasing voice.

All the blood rushes to my face. "O-oh my God I-I-"

"She's just messing with you child, don't worry." The man smirks and ruffles Lon'qu's hair affectionately. "Now, who would like to introduce me to this lovely young lady?"

Flavia hands me a glass of Sprite and puts an arm around me. "This is Lon'qu's girlfriend honey!" She winks at me.

"Moooom, I already said she's-" Lon'qu tries to interject.

"And what, our son made it official at Lemongrass?" the man asks as he pats the embarrassed teen on the shoulder and makes his way over to me and Flavia. He towers over me by a good foot or something, and I'm 5'7.

"Daaaad, that's not-"

I extend a hand out. "It's an honor to meet you, Mr…?" Why can't I remember Lon'qu's last name?! Did I ever know it at all?

"Oh, polite, isn't she?" Lon'qu's father looks at Flavia with raised eyebrows. "Just call me Basilio." He firmly grasps my hand.

"O...okay." Why are they so informal?! This feels so wrong! "But sir, I-"

Basilio releases my hand. "I know, I know. You two aren't dating." He goes towards the refrigerator and takes a bottle of Miller Light and just opens the bottle cap with his bare hand. Who is this guy?! "So will someone tell me what really happened at Lemongrass?" Basilio chuckles, showing that he's okay with not actually being told the truth. At least, that's what I think.

Flavia ushers me to the living room, where I sit next to Lon'qu on the couch. Flavia takes a single plush chair, and Basilio just stands around, taking a swig. After a long moment of silence and intense stares from his parents, Lon'qu says, "Nothing happened, Dad."

"Bullshit," Flavia interjects. Both Lon'qu and I jump. Basilio chuckles again.

"What's your name, child?" he questions me.

"S-Sumia, sir!" I take a sip of my beverage to calm myself down. Why am I so nervous?

"Sumia, huh? Never heard my son talk about you before." Basilio joins Flavia at the chair and sits on the armrest.

"Why is Sumia being interrogated right now?" Lon'qu says defensively, putting an arm around my waist.

Basilio shrugs. "I'm not interrogating her. I'm just...curious. We've never heard you mention her once, but she's in our home, on the day of your senior trip."

Ashamed, I pipe up with, "I-I'm sorry, it sounds like I should go." I begin to put the glass down on the coffee table in front of the couch, but everyone stops me.

"No hon, stay!" Flavia insists.

"I didn't mean to scare you," Basilio says.

"Please don't leave," Lon'qu whispers. It's what he said that gets me to sit back down.

"This is just a first," Flavia points out after a minute of tense silence. "Lon'qu...rarely brings a friend over, much less a girl. So we're just wondering how you got to be so close to our son." She smiles warmly.

I let out a deep breath and pick up the glass of Sprite again. "We actually just got to know each other today…"

After a few hours of laughing and playing a board game called Revolution, I finally decide to end the night by announcing, "Well, I really am sorry, but I should go for real this time."

"Awww, so soon?" Flavia pouts. I don't miss the look in Lon'qu's eyes and the way his shoulders slouch, even though he doesn't say anything. Basilio checks his watch and whistles low.

"She's right. It's almost 11, and we don't want to worry her mother, now would we? I'll drive her home." Even though she doesn't know I didn't actually leave the city. He gets up to go to the closet for his jacket.

"Let me join for the ride," Lon'qu offers. There's a slight blush on his cheeks. Don't overthink it.

His parents share a look. "Sure, boy, come on." Lon'qu gets up to get our stuff from the closet too. I get up, stretching and yawning. I guess I'm more tired than I thought.

"Thank you very much, Miss Flavia and Mr. Basilio, for letting me into your lovely home!" I say as Lon'qu brings my things over. I start to put on my jacket when Basilio whistles again. I turn around to see him looking outside the window by the door.

"Is something wrong, Dad?" Lon'qu asks.

"Yeah...come check this out, you two." We both go to where Basilio is standing, only to be met with a sheet of snow covering the window. Basilio strides over to open the door, where a blast of cold air and snow comes through before he quickly shuts it. "It's pretty bad out there right now. I don't think you're fit to go home just yet, Sumia."

Worry sets in. "Oh no...I hope we don't have to wait long."

"Oof," Flavia comments. Everyone turns to her. She's on her phone, checking the weather. "This storm isn't stopping anytime soon girl. I think you're going to have to stay the night." A part of me feels something sink into the pit of my stomach, but another part feels...elated? I can stay longer.

"O-oh wow, I feel bad for imposing myself on everyone longer…" I murmur, hanging my head. Lon'qu nudges me.

"Don't feel bad. We like you here." He gives a small smile.

I nod. "Okay." The meaningful look between Basilio and Flavia doesn't escape my notice.

"Here's her room! The bed is very comfortable, so I hope you like it!" Flavia says brightly after leading me into Olivia's room. Yeah, shy Olivia. The dancer girl who mostly speaks in squeaks at school. She's kind, but gets embarrassed wayy too easily. She lives here?

Flavia strides off, leaving Lon'qu at the doorway. I'm clutching my duffel, staring at the plush green carpet. "So...Olivia's your sister?"

"Adoptive," Lon'qu corrects. "She was adopted when we were twelve, soon after we moved here."

I bite my lip, nodding. "Cool. And what about you?"

I look up to see him smirk. "I was adopted when I was two." I keep nodding with nothing more to say. He clears his throat. "Come with me."

"What? Where?" I ask as I follow him out of Olivia's room. He leads me to a bedroom at the end of the hall. "What's this?"

Lon'qu ushers me inside and closes the door. He turns on the light nearby, illuminating a slightly cramped room with a twin bed, dark blue carpeting, a simple desk, and large windows with drawn back dark purple curtains. The egg-white walls only have a few movie posters. "It's uh...my room." I turn back to catch a blush spreading across his cheeks.

"I really like it! Very cozy."

He chuckles and steps towards me. "Yeah?" I eagerly nod. Before I can ask why I'm here, he turns me towards the window again. "Do you like the view?" The windows are misted over because of the storm. I wipe some of the condensation away and peer out. They overlook the backyard, which is buried under all the snow. The only thing I can still see is the swing set. One swings alone in the silent night. A car passing by briefly illuminates the darkness and I catch sight of an igloo.

"Awww, did you and Olivia make the igloo?" I turn around and yelp. Lon'qu's standing too close to me. My hand flies to my chest, where my heart beats wildly. "L-Lon…? W-wha…?"

He grasps the hand on my chest, circling his thumb over the back of my hand. This is uncharacteristically bold… "Can you," his dark brown eyes stare into my gray ones, causing me to blush, "please sleep here tonight?"

I furrow my eyebrows. "Are you...flirting with me?"

His cheeks inflame. "W-w-what?! That's flirting?" He takes a step back. Haven't you for almost the whole day though?

I shrug. "I mean, when stuff like that comes from you, yeah… Why else would you take me away from Olivia's room?"

Lon'qu looks down. "Yeah...you're right. Does that mean," he glances up at me from underneath his bangs, "you don't want to sleep here?" I hear the silent, "With me?" and my heart throbs. How can I say no?

I squeeze his hand. "Of course I want to sleep here."

My eyes fly open from hearing the snow plow driving down the street. Yawning, I sit up and look around. I camped out at the foot of Lon'qu's bed in bedding he provided, including a pillow. I pass a hand over it. So fluffy. Lon'qu insisted that I sleep on his bed and he sleeps on the floor, but I'd said no, I can't be taking his bed in his own house. So here we are. "Lon'qu?" I whisper in the dark. No answer. I don't know what I expected, actually. I rummage around for my phone, realizing I haven't checked it in several hours. I open to my lock screen and the brightness blinds me. I quickly type in the passcode and lower the brightness all the way down. That's better. I go through my notifications and gasp a little to see the numerous messages from all my friends. Five from Chrom, eight from Cordelia, two from Frederick...hell even one from Tharja? Wait shit, Chrom called?! Three times?! I quickly scroll through them all, skimming their contents. Chrom was trying to flirt with me until around 11, Cordelia was keeping me updated of the day's events, Frederick was reminding me to meditate again, and Tharja just...sent me a weird riddle that I'm not getting into. I check the call log. The last time Chrom called was...11:16 p.m. What was I doing then...right, getting ready for bed. Crap, it's 2:04 a.m. No way he'll be awake now…

"Sumia?"

I yelp and drop my phone. I look up and see Lon'qu looming over me, a queer look on his face. His eyes are filled with...sadness? Disappointment? Jealousy? It's too dark to tell. His hair's a mess. He has such a cute bed-head. "Y-yes?" I say, smoothing down my hair and fixing my polka-dot pajama shirt.

Lon'qu sighs. "Couldn't sleep?"

I shake my head from all of these confusing thoughts. "Um, no. I, uh, heard the snow plow and that woke me up…"

Lon'qu crawls out of bed and strides over to the windows, pulling a curtain to the side. "Looks like it's stopped snowing for now." He glances over with mischievous eyes. "You up for some fun?"

"You made it sound like we were going to rob a bank!" I stage-whisper, shivering in my coat and boots. I put on thick leggings underneath my pajama pants at least. Not trying to get frostbite. The teen boy leads me around the back of the house to the backyard. His laugh rings out in the still air, making me smile. He grabs my hand in response, and we stay like that until we see the swing set. "So what else do y'all have?" I ask after looking around for a bit. "That's not buried, I mean."

"We used to have a jungle gym, but Dad disassembled it once Olivia and I turned fifteen. We still have the slide though." Lon'qu points to a tall, snow-covered structure near the igloo. I walk towards it and wipe away some snow, revealing silver steps. Lon'qu suggests I don't mess with it right now. I comply and ask him to show me the igloo. He smirks and replies, "Let me show you the swings first."

I giggle. "What's there to see?" I follow him to the swing set.

"Just," Lon'qu lightly pushes me to sit on one, "let me push you, please?" Blushing, I let him push me until I'm sufficiently high enough. He then sits on the other one, swinging himself up to a similar height. Missing the touch of him already, I hold my hand out, not saying anything. Lon'qu notices and waits until we're swinging at the same pace to hold it.

"How do you make an igloo anyway? Is it hard?" The igloo is spacious on the inside, with two small windows across the door opening. Lon'qu and I are snuggled up together, sharing gloves because Lon'qu forgot his inside. Sure, he could go inside and get them, but it'd ruin the magic of the moment. You're so cheesy, Sumia. I'm blowing on his naked hand to warm it up.

Chuckling, Lon'qu tells me to stop and kisses my bare hand. "Making an igloo isn't too hard if you're dedicated enough and don't mind using Dad as a tunneler."

I laugh loudly and smack him on the shoulder. "You're so bad, Lon'qu!" He laughs along with me. We end in easy silence. That is, until my ungloved hand gets too cold and I press it against his neck, startling him. "Sorry?" I say sheepishly. I guess I'm getting bold too. Lon'qu answers by putting his hand on my cheek, a thumb over my beauty mark like last time. "Are you that comfortable with me now?" He doesn't flinch anymore. His throat rumbles against my hand as he says yes.

"But it's not just that."

I tilt my head. "What does that mean?"

He closes his eyes for a moment, taking a deep breath. When he opens them, he says, "Sumia."

"Yeah, Lon'qu?" He moves his hand on my cheek to cradle the back of my head. I bite my lip as my face flushes. "Well?" I ask again.

"You must know by now," Lon'qu answers, leaning in closer and closer. He stops just as our noses touch. My heart's beating way too fast. He snakes the other arm around my waist.

I smile. "I do." I circle both arms around his neck and he pulls me into a sweet kiss. He still tastes like the hot chocolate we had a while ago as his tongue explores my mouth. It doesn't feel invasive, more like he only wants to know me intimately. I return the favor by licking his bottom lip. Lon'qu growls, the vibrations flowing through my arms. I moan and we fall back. Lon'qu ends up on top, a hand playing with my hair. I can't say how long we stay like this, only that Lon'qu pulls away first. Some draft passes over, and my lips need his warmth again. "Don't stop," I mutter, my eyes fluttering open. He nuzzles my neck instead. "Stop, I'm ticklish there…!"

"Then let me kiss you there," Lon'qu murmurs in a low voice, leaving little kisses all over my neck. I'm really getting into it, but Lon'qu stops again.

"Heyyy…!" I playfully smack his chest. I stare up at him. That same queer look is back again. "Lon...qu?"

"Am I good enough for you?" he suddenly blurts, sounding desperate.

I freeze. "I...what?"

"Did you finally forget about him?" Lon'qu passes a thumb over my wet lips.

"What the hell are you talking about?" I release my hold on him and sit up a little.

"Um...the blue-haired guy...Chrom." His eyes stare at anywhere that's not me. They're watery. I'm not sure if they're tears or if it's the moonlight playing tricks on me.

"...Oh. Yeah." I look towards the igloo window. "I...guess?"

Lon'qu leans in to kiss me again, but only for a split second before pulling away again. "I need an answer better than that."

I shrug. "I don't know...I don't think about him with you around."

"But…?" Lon'qu presses.

I pass a hand through my hair and sniffle. The cold's getting to me. "Then I look at my phone and I...still feel something, you know?" Lon'qu slams the gloved hand on the ground. I flinch. He sees my reaction and his face falls.

"Sumia, I…" he begins to apologize. I assure him that it's fine. I know it's not meant for me. Lon'qu leans back, letting out an anguished grunt. "I just...I want all of you focused on me," he murmurs.

I give a half-assed laugh. "You can't be that jealous…? We only started getting to know each other today."

He covers his face with a hand. "I know, I know. But...I've been watching you for a long time before today."

"What? B-but, you…"

"Hate women, I know." I stare at him imploringly, begging him to continue. "I've had feelings for you for over a year, okay? I just...never got the courage to talk to you, and with Chrom…" He sighs. "Will I ever…?" He doesn't finish his sentence, but I know exactly what he means to say.

I shuffle to him and grab his ungloved hand and blow on it again. "Is that why you wouldn't let me check my phone all day?" A sniffle from him makes me look up. Tears are streaming down his face. "Lon…?"

"Yeah...I'm sorry about that...shit, why am I crying…?" He tries to wipe away the tears, but he only cries more. I wipe a few tears for him. "This isn't really cool of me, huh…"

I snort. "You stopped being cool the second you threw quarters at Dance Dance Revolution." That makes him laugh.

"Will you still like me, even like this?" He clasps my hand, brown eyes bright.

I hug him. "How can I stop? I've been falling for you all day."

Lon'qu and I are on his bed, cuddling underneath the covers. It's 3:07 a.m., but we're not ready to fall asleep. "This is definitely better than either of us sleeping on the floor," I comment, my head against his chest. His heart races when I say that.

"You're so right. Why didn't we think of this sooner?" He kisses the top of my head.

"Heyyy. If you're gonna kiss me, my lips are right here." Lon'qu laughs softly and leans down to kiss me. He whispers something, but I'm too lost in the kiss to hear it. Can we stay like this forever?

It's Monday morning and I'm pressed against my locker, Lon'qu leaning over me. We're holding hands and blushing. We try to be cool by talking about the weather-it's still shitty, but it hasn't snowed since Friday at least-but it's a front. Lon'qu's eyes keep lingering on my lips and I'm dying to feel his hair underneath my fingers again. Like you haven't been doing exactly that all weekend. I switch topics by talking about my mom. Yeah, this'll definitely kill the mood. I finally called Mom Saturday morning and told her that I missed the trip. She yelled at me for a good hour and demanded that I come home immediately. Basilio drove me home. Of course, Lon'qu came along too. They both helped me calm Mom down. As punishment, she grounded me for the rest of the weekend, but let Lon'qu stay and keep me company. I think you know what happened next. Okay, that sounds like we had sex, but we didn't! Really. Great, now I'm thinking about that. Now Lon'qu's pressing against me even more. This did not kill the mood at all. Thanks, Sumia. The pretty horny teen is about to kiss me, but Cordelia's voice rings down the hall. "Sumia?" She's sauntering down the hallway with Chrom, Frederick, and Lissa. I scream Cordelia's name, push Lon'qu away, and rush to them. I jump on her and we almost crash to the floor. "Mia, damn girl!" she yells.

"Someone's happy to see her best friend," Chrom comments. Lissa laughs lightly and Frederick sighs. I keep yelling, attracting attention from the other students. I hug Cordelia tightly, lifting her to everyone's surprise.

"I didn't think you were that strong, Sumia," Lissa says. Everyone laughs along. That is, until Lon'qu comes up behind me. He keeps his distance though. Everyone gives him the once-over. He hangs his head. I fall silent and the only thing I want to do is hold his hand.

"So what happened to you this weekend girl?" Cordelia questions. "We've all been trying to hit you up, but no answer."

I fake a laugh. "Ha...yeah...I've been kind of busy." I scratch my head, a blush on my cheeks.

Cordelia mouths, "With what?" while Lissa asks, "Why's Lon'qu here?" Everyone shushes her and Chrom slaps her shoulder. "Ow!" The siblings begin to squabble and Frederick gets in the middle and breaks it up.

"Come on, we don't have time for this," he says.

"Good thing you had the house all to yourself this weekend, huh Lissa?" I say to divert the attention.

"Yesss! Chrom's so annoying." Lissa rolls her eyes. Chrom hits her shoulder again. "Can you stop?!" Frederick begins to get in the middle again, but the bell rings, interrupting the almost interrogation.

"Shit we gotta go Mia." Cordelia pulls on my hand, leading me to AP Stat. We pass by Lon'qu. I mouth words of reassurance and he nods. "And we'll talk about...you know," she says sternly.

"What's to say?" I ask, looking back and watching how Chrom's face falls as he looks between me and Lon'qu. "I'm in deep."

"And Chrom?"

I shrug. "You know," I turn to her and smile, "I'd rather give my heart to Lon'qu."