Disclaimer: GrimGrave does not own the characters in this story; the characters and Hyakko belongs to the creator Haruaki Katō. GrimGrave does not earn money for writing fiction.
A/N: Please leave feedback. Thank you, and stay awesome.
My Friend, My Girlfriend
Chapter 3
I Fell in Love for the First Time
Ushio stepped inside the classroom and slammed the door shut behind her with enough force to startle her classmates. She quickly scanned the room through narrowed eyes; Tatsuki wasn't here.
She then looked up at the clock. It was about ten minutes left until classes begun. Tatsuki had always been early and jokingly reprimanded Ushio for showing up in the last minute.
´She's not here today either…´ the tomboy thought. This was the fifth day in a row that the bluette hadn't come to school; was Tatsuki avoiding her now? She couldn't blame her; still, Ushio wished that her friend would just let her apologize.
´What good will an apology do anyway?´ The dirt-blonde ran her hands through her hair and let out a groan in anger. ´I fucking kissed her. I fucking kissed Tatsuki! Why the hell did I do that?!´
She had asked herself that question repeatedly over the course of the week and never found a satisfying answer. She recalled the event again and again, but it didn't help.
/ She caught whiff of the bluette's scent: summer fruits and lavender. The scent was pleasant and Ushio breathed it in, intoxicated by it. Her friend sat so close to her, she couldn't help it. Tatsuki's skin glistened with sweat from the summer heat and the tomboy's pulsating muscle began to beat with gathering pace.
She turned to her friend who was apparently talking to her, but the words were drowned out as the whole world seemed to hold its breath and went still. Ushio remembered the blue dress with white flower patterns on; Tatsuki would have looked good in it. But wasn't Tatsuki always easy on the eyes?
Ushio didn't know why her mind had gone further to that thought and frankly she didn't care at the moment. She had had a fun time that day, spending it with the bluette like that. Tatsuki had enjoyed it too.
Before she realized what she was doing, Ushio had leant in./
She groaned and ruffled her hair in pure frustration as she banged her forehead on the desk. This wasn't going anywhere.
"Ushio, are you alright?" The dirt-blonde didn't look up from her desk. She had no desire to talk with Torako. "You're looking annoyed!"
"Oh, that's right!" Great, even Nene had to get involved. "You look more troubled than usual, Makunouchi-kun. Is something upsetting you?" She paused for a second. "Come to think of it, I haven't seen Iizuka-kun this week…Do you have anything to do with that, Makunouchi-kun?"
"Oh, fuck off!"
The whole classroom went silent. Although embarrassed for her outburst and the unwanted attention, it had been effective in making her classmates leave her alone. Ushio sighed and buried her face in her hands. Her head hurt.
´Of course I'm upset!´ Rage boiled and muscles tensed. ´I'm upset, I'm worried, I am angry over myself for what I did to my friend, and I don't know what to do!´
What could she do? The reason Tatsuki wasn't coming to school was because she was avoiding the tomboy.
Ushio looked up, absentminded. Whether Tatsuki liked it or not, they had to talk about this; Ushio had to, at least she felt so, apologize. The longer they both waited the more awkward and difficult it would be.
´Fuck it! I'm visiting her after school today.´
/././././
Tatsuki let out a tired sigh. Her eyes hurt as she glanced at what little sunlight managed to filter through the blinders. She had crawled up in her bed, wrapped in the sheets, and thought things over repeatedly.
A knock on the door disturbed her. "Milady, how are you feeling today?" When no answer came, Toshiko-san – her housemaid – simply continued, "I take it that you won't be going to school today either. I'll call them for you, dear. Breakfast is ready so eat when you please."
The blue-haired girl had meant to express her gratitude but she knew Toshiko-san was already gone.
She sighed again. Her housemaid must be worried to death at this point; Tatsuki had barely left her room the entire week except to eat and go to the bathroom. Her hair was a mess, dark bags had formed under her bloodshot eyes, and she had only managed to sleep a few hours each night.
How could she sleep when Ushio Makunouchi was on her mind? Her heart went sporadic at the mere thought.
Ushio had kissed her. Why did she do it and what had she meant by it? Was it Ushio's idea of a joke that had gone out of hand? Whatever it was, the result was the same.
They had kissed. Ushio had been the one to initiate it, but they had kissed. And that's about it. Tatsuki couldn't find a satisfactory answer to this at all, for Ushio's intentions and motivations would remain a mystery unless-
She clasped a hand over her mouth, eyes wide.
Unless she was to ask the tomboy directly.
No. No, that was impossible! The last person the bluette wanted to see right now was Ushio. If this had been a cruel prank –
…The dirt-blonde wasn't like that, though. She could be crude, foulmouthed, and stubborn, surely, but playing cruel jokes for the sake of it? No.
There had to be a good reason for the kiss, but what was it? Furthermore, what had that dream meant?
´Okay,´ Tatsuki thought, trying to go through all she knew once more. ´Let's rewind and start over…Focus.´
She took a deep breath.
´Ushio kissed me. She made the first move. The circumstances were that we were both close together. We had a good time skipping school.´ That felt weird to think about, but she had enjoyed skipping school that day. ´We had a discussion about how we appreciated each other for being in the same class…And we were about to take a few pictures together…and that morning I had a dream about her…´
Tatsuki mulled it over repeatedly. She had a gnawing little feeling at the back of her mind telling her the perhaps-obvious-perhaps-not answer.
Her heart skipped a beat.
´Did she misinterpret anything? Did I give off…"signals" without knowing?´
Her fingers traced down to her lips. The kiss had been clumsy and rough, but soft all the same. If she hadn't been caught off-guard, Tatsuki thought, had she perhaps reacted differently?
They were friends, after all. They had spent time together and grown closer than with anyone else in their circle of "friends". Come to think about it, the tomboy had been Tatsuki's first friend since she started high school. As much as the bluette had cared little for it, having a best friend like this had been good.
Her mind kept wandering and, speaking of Ushio, what would she do when they inevitably met again? The bluette couldn't stay home forever. Change schools? Out of the question. Change class? They'd still end up meeting each other sooner or later, and she couldn't ignore Ushio until they graduated, that's impossible.
´How can I talk to her though, when I can't even understand my own feelings?´
By the time she had ventured out of her room and to the kitchen, she still didn't know the answer. Toshiko-san had made an impeccable breakfast as always but not even the myriad of flavours nor the soothing, green tea could lighten her mood, or clear her mind.
Tatsuki's troubled mind rid her of relaxation even as she returned to bed, still in her pyjamas. She stayed there for the rest of the day, staring at the ceiling. Her every thought returned to Ushio Makunouchi, the tough girl who cared for her.
´I do care about her as well.´ She truly did – God above, she greatly cared for her best friend – but to what extent? Ushio kissed her – had she acted on romantic feelings and, if so, could Tatsuki reciprocate?
The bluette blinked. Reciprocate. That would mean that she'd liked the tomboy back – as in, like, like.
Did she, though?
A gentle knock on wood disrupted her chain of thoughts and Tatsuki jerked to the side, caught off-guard. "Y-yes?"
The door opened up and Toshiko-san popped her head inside with that smile she always had. "Pardon me for interrupting you, milady…"
"N-No, it's okay!" the bluette assured her. "What is it you wanted?"
"Well, milady, your friend is waiting for you downstairs. You know, the scruffy-looking one."
Her blood turned icy cold. She hadn't planned to meet the dirt-blonde so soon! Tatsuki's mind reeled; she was internally panicking and her head was spinning. She wasn't mentally prepared for the ordeal that would come with their conversation, not now!
"…Send her home. I can't see her now."
It hurt to say that, but it was for the best. Seeing Toshiko-san's expression, however, told the girl enough.
"A-About that, milady… I tried to tell her but she insisted that she had to speak to you. She's –"
"We need to talk sooner or later, Tatsuki." Her voice pierced the bluette's heart like an arrow. Ushio was right outside. "We might as well do it now."
Tatsuki wiped her brow, her heart pounding furiously beneath her breast. "…Let her in, Toshiko-san."
The housemaid stepped back from the room and in her place stepped the tomboy. Their eyes met, then averted, and the dirt-blonde closed the door behind her. She stood there, her schoolbag slung over one shoulder.
A few minutes passed without either of them speaking a word. They didn't look each other in the eyes until Ushio finally cleared her throat.
x.x.x.x
"You look like a mess," Ushio finally said. "Are you sick?"
Tatsuki shook her head. "No…I'm physically well."
"…I see."
"Mm…"
"Hey," Ushio began. Her classmate visibly tensed. "Listen… a-about that time—"
"You kissed me." The dark-haired teen blurted out and she had probably not meant for it to come out as sharp as it had, judging by the apologetic look on her face.
The tomboy rubbed her neck, gaze cast to the floor. "…Yeah."
"I thought we were friends."
That tone again. It made Ushio bristle. "We are."
"So why did you kiss me?"
She balled up her hands into fists. Intentional or not, Tatsuki's accusingly sharp voice was rubbing her the wrong way. "I…I don't know, alright! It…It just happened!"
The few seconds of silence that followed was torturous, but in retrospect it was easier to endure than the sheer spite that came after.
"So it didn't even mean anything?"
Ushio's eyes shot wide open, brow furrowed into a scowl. "That's not what I said!"
She was surprised when she was greeted by just as dark expression. "So what exactly are you saying, Makunouchi? Because all I know is that one second we were two friends enjoying an afternoon together, and in the next you kiss me out of the blue. That was my first kiss, and if this is just some cruel joke—"
"Yeah well, guess what?! It was my first, too!" the dirt-blonde shouted back, muscles tensing. "I may swear a whole fucking lot, and not give a damn about others at times, and hell, I can be egotistic every now and then! But don't fucking label me as a player!"
She paused, glaring daggers. Her friend stared back, wide-eyed. "I wouldn't ever pull that kind of crap on you, Tatsuki! We may not have known each other for that long, but I expected you to at least know that." She swore, loudly and with profanities that would make a sailor blush. "Fucking damn it! This isn't how I wanted to do this! Look, I don't know why I kissed you, and if that pisses you off, I'm sorry! It just felt right at the time and after spending the whole day with you, I felt weird around you! It's not like I understand what the hell it is that I'm feeling!"
Ushio's breath came out in ragged pants. Her eyes looked down at the floor and her heart raced wildly. The silence between them was deafening.
"…I can relate. It's not like I understand my feelings any better." The tomboy looked up at the other girl. She was eyeing the blonde, hugging her knees. "And in retrospect, I guess things could've been worse; I could have had my first kiss stolen by someone who didn't really care about me."
"I care about you." Why did it come out as if she was whining?
"I know. I care about you too," Tatsuki replied.
"Hey, Tatsuki." Ushio took a deep breath. "I'm going to try something."
"Wha—"
The dirt-blonde crossed the distance between her and the bed, grasping slender shoulders as their lips met for the second time. It lasted longer, more intimate than the last and Ushio's mind reeled. She took a reluctant step back.
The bluette looked up at her, eyelids heavy and cheeks flushed. "What…What was that for?"
"…I felt something." Ushio straightened her back. "Just now, as I kissed you. Whatever it was…I liked it. Friends don't kiss each other and feel good about it unless there's…something…you know?"
"…"
"This took a weird fucking turn…" the blonde said. "I don't even know anymore… Just…Look, I'm not playing around, nor do I know why I've kissed you twice now. All I know is that it felt…right, you know? So…"
Her voice trailed off and she suddenly swore again. The blonde ran a hand through her hair. "Shit…! I'm sorry. I think I just messed up everything again. I better go."
She didn't throw a glance at the bluette as she left the room.
"Just make sure you'll come back to school, you hear?!"
/././././
The tomboy bashed her forehead against the desk. She hadn't slept at all last night; instead she had chastised herself repeatedly for what she had done.
She had meant to apologise to Tatsuki, and instead they had now kissed twice!
´Good going, me! Way to go, fucking things up even more!´
If only the ground could swallow her up, that would be great. Why had she even bothered to come to school today? Worst case scenario, Ushio thought, Tatsuki would arrive and it'd get even more awkward between them. How the hell would they go from where they left off?
…The bluette must be furious with her. If she stayed home for days from the first kiss, would she consider changing classes next?
Ushio's heart jerked painfully in her chest. What if Tatsuki changed schools? It would be understandable, but losing the one person you considered a best friend had muscles tensing up and eyes glassy with tears.
Then again, she might've already lost that friendship.
"Oh! Hey, Tat-chan!" Torako yelled.
The dirt-blonde's whole body tensed. Tatsuki had come back? Ushio had told her to, but she didn't think the other teen actually would have…
"Good to have you back, Iizuka-san!" Ayumi exclaimed. "Are you feeling better?"
"Y-Yes, a bit better… Thank you for your concern…"
"It's really good to see you again, Iizuka-kun," Nene commented next. "We were worried about you, sweetie. We were almost certain that Makunouchi-kun had done something to you."
Ushio bristled.
"W-What makes you think that?" The bluette's voice was shaky.
"Both of you were gone before solely you went missing for five days. Sounds fishy," the redhead teased. "Maybe she went full on punk and threatened you—"
"She wouldn't do something like that!" The whole classroom fell silent. Tatsuki clasped a hand over her mouth, cheeks flushed, and ocean-coloured eyes met with hazel ones, wide and startled.
The girls quickly looked away from each other.
/././././
Second period was P.E. Of course; as if having kissed Tatsuki twice against her will wasn't enough, now she was undressing at the corner of the tomboy's eye.
This was sheer torture. Ushio groaned. It was bad enough that the thought of her friend in a dress was enough to give her weird ideas, but undressing? It's not like she had seen the bluette in the locker-room before! Why would she want to, anyway?
…Why, indeed. Ushio had kissed Tatsuki once –and she had liked it, despite it all – then kissed her again, and she had definitely felt something. And there was definitely a small urge that gnawed at the back of her head to steal a quick glance to her left…
Creamy white expanses of skin greeted the tomboy's vision as Tatsuki undressed herself, standing only in underwear – snowy white with red laces matched her, definitively – and…was she taking her time rummaging for gym clothes? Furthermore, where was everyone else?!
"Where did I put them…" the bluette whispered to herself, but still loud enough. Given that it was only the two of them left, you could practically hear a pin drop. The other teen still searched until she finally pulled out her bloomers and her shirt, still taking her time. It was almost as if she—
Bloodshot, hazel eyes widened. The way Tatsuki was arching back, puffing out her chest and stuck out her legs as slow as possible to put on her bloomers was not only damn near erotic, but it was as if she wanted Ushio to look.
And looking, she was. The dirt-blonde's heart skipped several beats as she drank in slim legs, a toned midriff that led up to simple-yet-ample breasts, and those beautiful blue eyes that stared right…at her?
Heat spread across her cheeks and Ushio turned away. The bluette must be branding her a pervert now – the same label their class-president had – and that wasn't a pleasant thought. But when the dark-haired teen didn't say anything, Ushio peered carefully over, meeting her eyes.
They'd be both late at this rate; however, the dirt-blonde was curious. She had yet to put on her shirt. An idea formed in her head and, hands on her lower back, arched back, pretending to stretch a little. She sighed as she did, exaggerating a little for effect, and glanced over.
The bluette was a deep shade of red but wouldn't look away. In fact, she was staring even more intensively than before.
´Well…´ Ushio thought. ´This is…interesting.´
/././././
Could this get any more awkward? Ushio sighed, trying her best to pay attention to the teacher, despite the occasional giggle and a sneer from a certain crimson-haired pervert.
The gym teacher had decided that she and Tatsuki had been too slow and needed to fetch them, with the unnecessary comment that they "could frolic after school!" Not only had they been caught posing for each other, their whole class had gotten the wrong idea and looked at them funny; not to mention that their class-president had been all over them and demanding to know what was going on between them.
It didn't help that, despite wanting the rumour to stop before it grew out of hand, Ushio still glanced back at the bluette. Tatsuki would look back, sometimes apologetically, and that was it.
Except the tomboy's heart fluttered every time their eyes met. So what was the dark-haired girl thinking right now? Was she just testing something as well?
She sighed. This last period couldn't come to an end fast enough.
Finally, the bell rang, signalling the freedom from academic servitude. Their homeroom teacher was talking about how the students should be careful on their way home or something, but the tomboy didn't care; she just wanted to get home to mull things over.
"Makunouchi-san?" Ushio turned around, schoolbag flung over her shoulder, as if by reflex. "May I have a word with you?"
Heat subtly crept over the blonde's face – partly due to a certain person cat-calling, drawing even more attention to them – and she nodded. "Yeah, you may. But let's get the hell out of here."
"I couldn't agree more," the bluette replied as they left the classroom. They continued down the hallways in complete silence, down the stairs and out of the building.
"…So what did you want to talk to me about?" Ushio said.
"Let's just go to my house, alright? Neither of us wants to get caught again and provide more fodder for that rumour."
The walk back to Tatsuki's home had been in complete silence. The teens hadn't as much as looked at each other the whole way.
It wasn't when they had finally arrived at the bluette's room that Tatsuki finally spoke up. "I don't understand you at all, Makunouchi-san."
It wasn't like she understood herself either, but the blonde's brow furrowed still. "I told you that you can call me by my name."
"You kissed me. Twice," the dark-haired teen continued. She crossed her arms over her chest. "Even though you supposedly visited me yesterday to apologize for the first one, you stole another one.
"I didn't mean to, I just…!" Ushio let out a weary sigh. "Look; after it happened the first time, I spent a lot of time thinking – even more so after yesterday. I kissed you again because I wanted to try something – something I was unsure of, yet had a sneaking suspicion of."
Muscles tensed as she continued. "I care about you, Tatsuki. And when I kissed you yesterday I…" The tomboy's face was flushed scarlet. "I…Fuck, I can't even say it properly!"
"Ushio," Tatsuki said, finally referring to her by first name again. "Calm down."
"I fucking can't! I want to tell you but it is damn near impossible!"
"Ushio—"
"Ilikedit!" the dirt-blonde finally blurted out. With her gaze cast to the floor, hands balling up into fists, she forced herself to spill out those words – the thoughts that had been there since she first had moved without thinking.
The quietness was torture; the teen could hear blood pumping in her ears.
"I…liked it. I like you." Her voice was weak, quiet. Never in her life had Ushio felt so vulnerable or ashamed. She was exposed – to herself and someone as close to her as Tatsuki – and she had to deal with it. "…I fucking like you. That's it; that's why I kissed you at the photo booth, and yesterday." She looked up. "I fucking like you, Tatsuki."
It was as if a heavy weight was removed from her shoulders. Like a rope that had constricted her was suddenly loose and she could breathe again.
The bluette stared back, eyes wide and face red. "…You know, the first time, I was quite taken aback, you know. I mean, my best friend suddenly kissing me? At first I thought it was a cruel joke on your part, but you were right; I know you better than that."
She walked over to the bed and settled on the edge. "I know you care about me. And you know I care about you. I didn't know that the extension to our caring for each other ran this deep, however, but I don't mind." She managed a small smile. "I've done a lot of thinking too, Ushio, especially after what happened yesterday. So I decided to try something myself."
The dirt-blonde's eyes widened. "Gym class… I fucking knew it! You were checking me—"
Tatsuki's face became redder as she buried her face in her hands out of shame. "Don't say it out loud! It was embarrassing, you know?"
"That makes two of us!" Ushio replied. She laughed – who knows why – and sat down next to the bluette. "Shit…This isn't how people actually do this…"
Tatsuki shook her head, barely managing to stifle a chuckle. "N-No, it's not…" Her voice trailed off as she took a moment to reflect. "Ushio."
Hazel eyes wandered over to the other teen. "Yeah?"
"I didn't get a chance to tell you earlier…but I like you too. There's more to you than what most people see, and I'm glad that you show those sides of you to me."
"T-Tatsuki…" The tomboy was baffled.
"Your profanities, at times, can be a bit frustrating, but I suppose it adds to your charm," the bluette continued. "When you kissed me yesterday…I felt it, too. That ´something´ you mentioned." The dirt-blonde's eyes widened as Tatsuki continued. "I had trouble believing it, so I did something risky and utterly embarrassing…But being watched by you made me feel…comfortable. The same way a lover sees another, I suppose."
Ushios' breath hitched. "W-What the hell? Pervert…"
"What does that make you, then, seeing how you ogled me like Andou-san?"
"Hey, don't group me together with that skirt-chaser!"
The two looked at each other, lips curving neatly upwards in unison, and shared a laugh.
"We are terrible at this…" Tatsuki stated.
Ushio nodded. "Yeah, we are. But I guess every relationship doesn't start out the same classic way."
Relationship. The bluette thought back to the time she went to the café and ran into Ushio: she remembered lovers holding hands, laughing, and just be together. The aspect of having someone that dear to you – and Ushio being that person – made her heart flutter.
"So, what now?" the tomboy asked, rubbing her neck. "I mean… hell, I like you, and you like me. That's quite the change in our lives, you know."
Tatsuki hummed and scooted closer. "One thing comes to mind."
Ushio turned her head. "Yeah?"
"We c-could…kiss, I suppose…" the bluette replied. "I…would like to feel that ´something´ again…"
Although the tomboy was grinning, her blush betrayed her; she was shivering slightly, throat dry and heartbeat accelerating. "Y-Yeah…I like that idea."
Ocean-coloured twin pools looked right into hazel ones. Eyelids closed down, hot breaths washing over their faces, and hearts hammering away beneath their breasts as the girls slowly leant in. They were nervous, despite having kissed twice, and their breaths hitched the second before their lips finally touched.
It was soft, chaste. The kiss was short and reluctant and the girls withdrew, looking at each other. Unspoken words were exchanged in the way they watched one another, and they leant in again, confident. Now, bolder and steadily growing aggressive, they kissed more passionately.
It was, they noted, an orgasm of flavours; it was sweet, tangy.
Addictive.
It wasn't until, after what felt like an eternity, that the girls pulled away and rediscovered just how much they needed oxygen. Their eyes were heavy lidded and their breaths shallow.
"I felt it," Tatsuki said. "Quite clearly this time."
Ushio managed a small grin. "What a coincident; I felt it as well."
The teens softly laughed.
"So…This is it, then? You and I?" Tatsuki asked.
"I would hope so," Ushio replied. "Because I don't think I can let you go now."
"How dominant…" the bluette commented with a giggle. Her mind immediately began to come up with a cover story to tell their friends, but, as the dirt-blonde moved in and stole another kiss (and another one, and one after that) she figured it could wait.
For now, they were both content with celebrating the beginning of their relationship.
The end.
