"A Moment in Spring" Ch. 2
The family has breakfast together, the smell of food hung in the air, the clanging of untensils echoed in the silent room. The family ate a peaceful and satisfying breakfast. Nikki helped her mother gather the dishes and washed them, while the boys readied themselves for their work day. The boys said their goodbyes as Nikki grabbed her purse, "Bye mom, I'm going to the mall today with Rieko." Her mother said, "Alright then, be safe and don't stay out for too long." The front door closes. "Well, I guess it's just me, alone in the house again." A slow smile appears on Kammie's face as she runs to her room and slams the door shut.
The phone rings. Nikki answers, "Hello?" "Hey, I was wondering if you wanted to meet up at my place or at the mall?" Rieko asks. Nikki replies, "Oh, um I think it would be easier to meet up at your place." Rieko excitedly responds, "Awesome! I'll be waiting for you in the front!" To that, they both say goodbye and hang up the phone. Moments later, Rieko is visible as Nikki runs up to her and gives her a big hug. "Whoa Nikki, your boobs have gotten bigger!" Rieko says while squeezing them. "Wha!?" Nikki jumps backwards, covering her chest. "You don't need to grab them!" Nikki says with a reddened face. Rieko replies, "Aw c'mon, I'm just having some fun." Nikki smirks.
The walk to the mall is short, the breeze makes flower petals dance along the ground. The air has a cool, crisp feel. Winter has been over for a week, but the chill is still coming on. When the girls arrive at the mall, they see a couple of friends. They wave to say hi, and keep on walking into the mall. They go into clothes stores, shoe stores, toy stores and before they know it, it has already been three hours. The girls looked at each other with their stomachs growling and agreed it was time to eat, they quickly looked for a place to order. "Hey, let's go to this burger place! I've heard it was really good." Nikki said. Reiko agreed as they walked toward the counter, they saw the menu and immediately agreed it would be their favorite place to eat.
They sat down after receiving their food, the smell was intoxicating. The meat was juicy, the lettuce and tomato were crispy and the buns were warm. The burgers were rapidly devoured by the hungry girls, they stayed a while to just chat and finish their drinks. Suddenly, Nikki sees a guy approaching their table, her body locks and stiffens. Nikki starts feeling nervous as the guy gets closer to her table and makes eye contact with her. Rieko notices her best friend looks nervous and faces in the direction Nikki is looking at. To her surprise, Rieko notices the guy and greets him. "Hey Kazuma! What are you doing here?" Kazuma is surprised as he didn't notice her sitting there. "Oh! I was just around, then I saw this pretty little face here. You know her?"
"Of course I know her! She's my best friend!" Rieko exclamed. At this moment, Nikki, using all her strength, gets up to greet Kazuma. "Hello, my name is Nikatomo or Nikki for short. Nice to meet you." Kazuma bows to say hello. Kazuma asks, "Can I join your table?" Nikki agrees with Rieko as he pulls up a chair. They talk for another hour before Rieko gets a phone call explaining how she needs to be home soon. Rieko says goodbye to everyone and leaves, while Nikki and Kazuma are sitting in an awkward silence. "Hey, um...Do you want to go for a walk?" Kazuma asks. "It's getting kinda late." Nikki comments. Kazuma replies, "Well, how about I walk you home then?" Nikki nonchanlantly agrees.
It is now in the evening, the wind has calmed down and the air is colder. Their breaths are visible as they walk along the sidewalk and pass by a fountain. Kazuma stops, which makes Nikki slow down and look behind her. She slowly walks towards him, the misty air around them, the lights are dim. Kazuma stares at her, and grabs her hand. Nikki looks up at him in confusion, with one hand behind her neck, Kazuma pulls her head closer. They both close their eyes, and kiss. For the first time in her life, she has kissed a boy. Her stomach is swirling around, she stops shaking, the warm lips pushed against each other. In her mind, she says "This feeling...What is this?" Kazuma then pulls away a little and bites her lower lip. Again, her mind is racing "WHAT? This feels so good! I don't want this to end!" Kazuma then pulls away. He stares at her again, "Nikki, I think I'm in love with you. Do you want to be my girlfriend?" Without hesitation, "YES! I would love to!" They then walk together, hands closed together, steps perfectly matched.