A/N: Posting chapter two this soon because I got a review! Reviews catalyse posting, y'know XD

Here you go!

Mikuo speaks

I am quite happy I made a breakthrough, relaying messages for the first time ever. I must remember to thank Shion Akaito for forcing me to it.

But... how?

It is the day after I relayed the message. I must thank him before too much time passes by. Yet, I am hesitant to do so. He's the scariest person I've ever met. I have to force myself to thank him, harder than he had forced me to relay a message. Come on, Mikuo. You can do it. Just thank him for a start. It's easy. Everything else comes after that.

The moment I get to talk to him, I quickly say, "Thank you." Now that's not too hard, right? Good job, Mikuo.

"Huh? What for?" He looks puzzled. Alright, Mikuo, time to explain. Slowly now.

"Yesterday, you told me to relay a message. Actually it's the first time I did that, so..." Oh God... What comes after 'so'?

"Oh, really? Um, you're welcome." He looks uneasy.

I am relieved for not having to continue my sentence. "That's... that's all." Okay, now I'm free again. Very good.

"But, well, Hatsune, you know..." he starts to say, then quickly shuts up.

Oh, no. I'm not free yet? "Um, yeah?" I try to sound casual, like it's no big deal. In truth I'm more scared than ever.

He looks hesitant. "The thing is... It's Meito, not Meiko."

Akaito speaks

I regret telling Hatsune what he did. Blame my big mouth. Why can't I just keep quiet, accept his thanks and walk away? I feel awful now.

Hatsune's face reddens quickly. He blinks once. Twice.

"Ah! I'm sorry!" I say, but that sounds so fake that I can't believe it myself. "I... I didn't mean anything, honest! I... It just..." How do you explain your big mouth to someone? Maybe I really meant bad, pointing out his mistake like that after he thanked me. I'm such a bad guy...

Hatsune shakes his head. "I'm the one who should be sorry." He's looking down at the floor now, so I can't see his expression.

"Hatsune, I know it's stupid to say this but, don't mind that, okay? I'm glad you're willing to help me. Really," I say, trying to ease him a little.

"No... thanks for telling me the truth." Hatsune looks up at me. He smiles a bit. I didn't expect him to smile.

"I... Ice-cream! I'll treat you to ice-cream after school, okay?" It's my only way of repaying his kindness. What kindness, you ask? Well, isn't it obvious? He's hurt but he doesn't show it, and he's probably doing that so that I'll feel less guilty. That's kindness enough for me.

"Huh...?" He looks kind of scared. I don't understand this.

"It's settled, then. Ice-cream after school!" I quickly say, since classes will start soon. I don't know what he's looking scared for, but no one can say 'no' to free ice-cream, right?

I admit I'm not a social expert. Sure, I have my friends and club stuff and all that, but I'm clueless about people as it is. Whenever I get stuck in an awkward situation, I try to wing myself out of it. I hate getting stuck in awkward situations. It makes me feel uncomfortable and helpless.

Mikuo speaks

To be honest, I don't get Shion Akaito at all, and that scares me even more. I set up a guide for myself in regards to communicating with people, and that is to go with the flow. If I hadn't done that, my fear of people would have overtaken me.

So, Mikuo, just go with the flow.

'After school' seems like a long way off when Shion Akaito said it, but we are already at the ice-cream stall now.

"So, Hatsune, which flavour do you like?" Shion Akaito asks.

No flow to go with now... I read the menu carefully. Is mint on the list? Yes. That's great. "Um... mint..."

He looks at me, smiles, then says to the vendor, "Make it two, please."

It's good that I'm not the one doing the ordering, because I never know what to say. I try smiling back at Shion Akaito in thanks, but he doesn't seem to notice.

"Here you go," Shion Akaito says, holding an ice-cream in front of me.

"Thank you..." I take the ice-cream. I notice that he has a similar one in his hand. That means we both like mint, then.

"I'd love to chat, but I still have club activities so I'm going back to school now," he says.

That explains why he didn't bring his school bad along when we went out of the school. "Okay," I say.

"See ya!" He waves, then heads towards the school.

"B-Bye!" I don't know if I said it loud enough. I think it doesn't matter, since he left first.

I continue to head on home. I feel something bursting inside of me. A feeling, perhaps. I'm not too sure. It must be excitement, since my heartbeat goes faster. It has been a long time since I have properly communicated with someone and felt anything.

A/N: Y'know, I have a big exam coming up and my mum's not too happy with me staying online for too long and stuff... But I'm determined to complete this 13-chapter story within this month. The manuscript's all done. I just need to type them out... Guhh...