Gosh, I really like this person. Someone who can stand playing in Lunatic (I can't, lol) AND read Negima is a guaranteed bundle of awesome. 8DDD

Thanks for letting me publish this. ^^

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Wheeeew. This one took quite some time, huh…urgh. I keep being distracted *cough*Touhou*cough* lately. XD The anime lineup for winter looks veery interesting too, so you can guess the reason for the delay. =)) Also, if you guys haven't read Negima, YOU MUST! XD …ahem, sorry for the blatant advertising. XD I just got back from beating UFO (Touhou, again XD) in Lunatic mode (hehe, the word is so fitting). Moving along, here's the third chapter. 8DDD Enjoy? X3

Note: Italicized words are usually for thoughts in my works…the ones inside quotation marks are for flashbacks of something though. XD And the ones in between normal sentences are probably just for emphasis. XD I use italic a lot, huh? =))


"So…how long will this go for?"

They were more or less nearing Shinagawa Station when Tamami spoke up to ask. She successfully broke the ice around their relatively sudden silence over their holding of hands—which by the way, was her own suggestion to compensate for her inability to agree kissing the other girl. It took a while to convince.

"Um…" Satoko murmured after quite a long pause.

She sweatdropped before saying; "You didn't plan this too well, huh? …maa, I guess I can understand though. This being experimental and all."

Highly aware of her reflexes all of a sudden, she felt her interlocked hand loosen. She hoped the tense air wasn't too obvious for the otaku to catch—otherwise, her half-baked plans would be revealed. After all, who would agree to even help the already absurd idea that was mostly fueled for the reason that rejection did not sit too well with her—and that her couple scheme was only an overwhelming influence by a close friend's seemingly happy relationship…not to mention her admittedly exaggerated analyzing of the girl's declaration to their friendship.

"We can't still be going out after five months, that's for sure. You'd definitely grow tired of playing lesbians by then. Haha." Tamami laughingly stated, not showing any signs of notice over her obvious reactions.

"…is it a laughing matter? You sound so sure too…" She asked in attempts of covering up what's left of her blunder.

"Call it common otaku knowledge, my dear! There are shoujo manga where themes about experimenting one's sexual orientation are tackled. More often than not, the bishoujo will start as a gender-confused teen. With this dilemma, she will try to date women in order to find her identity. It will go on for a while until the immaturity is realized. She grows out of it, and will eventually fall for a guy like she's supposed to!" The girl seriously but enthusiastically narrated. "You're the type to fall in that trope, Sugi-san."

"…you're calling me immature?" Satoko immediately asked, trying to absorb the girl's long-winded and word-boggling fiction.

"E-eh, um—

"And let me get this straight, aren't you a fan of…what was that…yuri?"

"Well, er, yes…sorta."

"That's not the same with shoujo?"

"No…shoujo's more focused on the romance…"

"Huh? Isn't yuri just the same?" She can't believe she was actually getting the gist of it.

Scratching her cheek, she replied; "Oh…the difference is that shoujo is…uh, straight. And yuri is—you get the point."

"Then what happens in yuri? Do they stick together until the end?"

"I haven't read much yuri, to be honest. The ones I've read have that kind of ending though…but since the relationship is pretty taboo, I guess they don't end too well…" She shrugged one second and looked thoughtful after another. "…although, the ending depends frequently on the theme used…like, they fall in love not because they are young, but because it was the most natural thing that could happen, and they just know it —um, why are you asking about this again?"

"I…it's your geek-speak! You expect me to get it in one go?"

---

One would think that after cosplaying here and there, her confidence was finely placed on a certain level already. She figured that was not generally the case, so even having years of time spent with her; there were still things that are yet to be revealed. It wasn't a recent discovery, but the fact that her stubbornness was a force to be reckoned with was something she did not expect—especially from her. Who would have thought Tamami was so shy? Getting a kiss or two was like fighting for a war.

"What's the point in becoming a couple if you won't even kiss me?" Satoko pouted.

"Give me time, Sugi-san! It's not that easy!" The pigtailed girl reasoned, her face visibly reddened.

It was their second week together. Normally, something other than dating and flirting would have happened already. It was like that with ALL of her relationships. But ironically, the things they did were nothing less of what they did as friends. It made her question if they were really a couple. Sure, they went shopping, watched movies—they even imitated Mari and Akko's trademark deed of matching cellphone straps. Despite her love of mixers, the things they did weren't half bad. It wasn't boring, nor was it too fun—if anything, she just felt a little…exasperated. Deem her a fool for thinking so, but while they were only under the pretense of being lovers, it didn't mean that she—or they, should be deprived of experimenting thoroughly…right?

"What's not easy? We just press our lips against each other and—

"Ahh! I know that! Don't say it!" Her kissing-monster tendencies were bad enough—especially since she remembered absolutely NONE of it—so it was at least encouraging to hold onto her wish of a romantic 'first kiss'. Sure, they've kissed before, heck—she's kissed even Akko—but those were for photo booth purposes!

"I won't use my tongue, promise…"

Having just themselves inside the karaoke booth was for the best. The woman was just asking for a scandal with all those extreme requests…it's as if she was awfully drunk. Sighing, the petite lady seated herself in defeat on one of the couches. She knew Sugi-san was aggressive, but she never saw this behavior during mixers! It wasn't too staggering but it wasn't normal either. Was she like this with her boyfriends? What were they doing here this early anyway? All those thinking made her extremely thirsty.

"A-anyway, why don't you pick another song already? We're here to sing you know."

Just as she was going to drink a glass, her companion's whiny voice resonated; "What's with you…so cold…" Picking up the microphone, the taller woman bit her lip. "You even said you'll love me forever…"

"HUH?! When did I…"

Alarmed, she inspected the contents of the glass the other girl held…

"Alcohol?!" Placing the drink down, she faced the culprit. "Sugi-san! How did you--mmf!"

A blouse was unexpectedly thrown at her face, effectively stopping her from continuing her interrogation. Taking the object away, another piece of clothing flew near her. This could only mean one thing—her guess was answered as she saw her friend clad on only her lacy, black bra and cotton miniskirt now. She's drunk! And stripping!

"I felt so lonely all this time you know~ I've been waiting and waiting…and now you're breaking up with me?!" Her string of words were inconsistent and nonsensical, she was producing tears every time she spoke too.

"E-eh…no! Of course not!" Tamami replied in panic. "And please don't remove your skirt!"

"…so you love me?"

"Erm…yes?"

"Are you sure?"

"Um…yes?"

"Do you swear it?"

"Geez! I already said yes!"

"Then swear iiittt!!"

"Fine! I swear that I love you!" Waiting for a reaction, she carefully observed her friend lower her head. She stayed like that for what seemed like an eternity that Tamami thought everything was over with—until she found herself pounced and pushed back to the couch.

"That's a good girl…" She purred.

"Wh-wha?! Sugi-san?!"

Giggling in hush tones, the drunken girl moved closer, a lopsided grin emanating her flushed expression. Both her hands were nicely pinned to both her sides in what seemed like a colossal feat for the Sugiyama lady. She tried budging, she really did, but there was little to nothing she could do as the blonde's lips were nearing her own. As her last gesture of retaliation, she shut her eyes tight, teary as it was. The sound of karaoke music drowned in her ears in a fading manner—she just hoped the other girl wouldn't regret this later. To begin with, having a go at this fake couple kiss was not something Sugi-san would actually enjoy, especially since it involved herself.

"Kiiih…"

Strangely, even after a couple of minutes have passed, nothing of the sort she expected befell upon her. There was, however, a questionable weight that kept her to her position. Slowly, she opened her eyes—only to see the inebriated girl fast asleep on top of her, her fluffy hair tickling her neck in the process. She sighed in relief; silently thanking the alcohol was strong enough to have the girl lose consciousness before she made any more rash things.

But now, a much bigger problem was at hand. There was just the two of them, inside a moderate sized karaoke booth. Both of them were on the couch, on top of each other. One was only on her bra while the other squinted beneath her, looking as if she was thoroughly feeling the softness of her chest. It was not a sight that anyone would just brush off or figure out in just one look. The possible scenes played in her mind like a film, and no matter what, none of it looked good for the both of them. It was actually fine if it was just her—she was often mistaken as a lesbian due to her fixation on yuri cosplay and manga anyway. But the girl atop her was someone she imagined to be the center of misshapen gossip due to her popularity and appearance. That was not good…she needed to wake her friend up and get the two of them out of the awkward position.

"Hey, Sugi-san," She shook her shoulder gently. "Wake up. C'mon…"

The girl only stirred, but otherwise stayed in her position, looking peculiarly comfortable.

"Come on…wake up already!"

After a few good minutes of shakes and nudges, the girl fluttered her eyes open.

"…what are you doing?" She asked in a rather groggy tone.

"That's my line, dummy." Tamami sweatdropped. "In any case, could you please get off me? You're not light."

Groaning, Satoko stood up and sluggishly moved away. It wasn't noticeable earlier, but the room was pretty cold—oh.

"…I was drunk." It was a statement more than a question.

The auburn haired girl could only nod in reply, which in turn the wavy haired woman took as a cue to blush and feel embarrassed. She does not redden or feel discomfiture easily, especially not over something this simple. Her vision was a bit hazy, but she could tell that she made quite a racket given the atmosphere, their snacks, the drinks and Tamami's disheveled hair. Surreptitiously, she thanked the gods for her fast rate in sobering up—and that she was not with a guy this whole time. Heaven forbid what sort of things would fall upon her if that were the case.

"Just try recovering your vision for the moment, Sugi-san. I'll handle the rest."

Unaware that she was visibly shivering from the chill, she watched her petite friend stand up to place her slightly furry jacket over her own shoulders wordlessly. She then started to collect her tossed clothing from the ground. Once done, the girl walked towards the table to pour a glass of water—probably for herself. It was expected, as she must have had a hard time putting up with the atypical and perhaps unreasonable actions she exhibited earlier. In a daze, she settled to just watch her gulp it down. But instead, she found the glass now resting on her hands, waiting to be consumed. It could be her lingering drunken stupor, or the sudden warmth of the air, but she was astounded at how calm and uncomplaining the otaku was the whole time. Her eyes displayed nothing but concern and understanding, almost as if the string of events were a normal occurrence to her.

"…thanks." She worded slowly, slipping in her shirt to cover her flushed face.

"Hehe, no problem. It's part of the job too, you know?"

The alcohol must still be in effect if she did not get what the otaku meant by what she said. "Eh…?"

Playing with a strand of hair, Tamami murmured. "Well…you know—girlfriends…? Honestly, I can't get used to that term…"

Satoko couldn't help but chuckle at the sight of a timid and fiddling Tamamin. Her cuteness spoke volumes at that very moment…so much that she had an urge to just hug her then and there.

Before that was accomplished however, the room chimed a loud "PING-PONG!" that indicated their expired time of usage of the karaoke booth. Given the automatic opening of the door, both girls got out of the booth, their eyes glued interestingly on the perfectly swept marbled tiles.

"…let's continue our date?" Tamami carefully suggested.

It was possibly just their luck that the rain poured just as they were headed for the shopping center around Ikebukuro, but since that wasn't the case, the necessary equipment for this uncalled weather—in autumn no less—was not prepared whatsoever. Waiting for the rain to let up, Satoko realized that was not the entirely true for the both of them, as Tamami pulled raincoat out of her oversized bag.

"You knew it was going to rain?" She asked, staring funnily at the green apparel.

"Not really…but I always tend to over-pack things up when I'm heading out…ehehe." Unfolding was quite an effort, as it was big enough to shelter two people, the pigtailed lass realized.

"It comes in handy, surprisingly. …so, you brought a manga, I assume?"

"Eh…? No…"

Now that was something to contemplate about. "…Why?"

"Well, I figured you wouldn't like me to bring one…especially on dates."

"Oh…" She couldn't tell if she was supposed to be flattered or worried, but she felt it was bordering on the latter. Was she pulling Tamami away from the things she enjoyed? Come to think of it, the last time she ever mentioned anything otaku-ish was when they formed a deal to become an item. She did not remember another time after that.

"It's ready now, Sugi-san!"

"Huh?"

"The rain doesn't show any sign of stopping at the moment and we can't wait under this bus stop forever. I'd say we use this and move someplace else, ne?"

"…but that thing looks so geeky…" Satoko commented dryly, eying the blue haired girl riding on some robot thingy that was printed on the clothing.

"Um…it's better than nothing?" She weakly argued. It was a bad idea after all.

"…but I guess we have no choice. Let's go, Tamamin."

Before anything was said, the shorter one felt her raincoat draped above her head. Looking up, she saw the taller girl holding her end in place. Smiling a bit, she held the other end and signaled that they were ready to take on the downpour.

The rain wasn't that strong, so the trip was more or less a pleasant one. The two girls managed to keep themselves dry until they found a reasonable place for shelter. Upon their success of reaching a local family restaurant, someone caught Tamamin's keen eye.

"Isn't that Akko?" She pointed out casually.

Following the girl's arm with her eyes, she soon saw their chestnut haired friend rooted to a wall at a nearby candy store; her look was that of someone who just had her most favorite thing stolen. She was pouting and had her arms crossed—a rare sight for an ever cheerful individual such as Akko. Taking into consideration the past episodes of counseling towards her, the only thing that can make her lose face like that was something that concerned Mari. So then, was it right to approach her at this time? Would it—

"Hey~ Akko!" Tamami called out and waved a hand.

that could work too, I guess.

Looking at their direction, the hazel-eyed maiden's features lit up. "Tamamin! Sugi-san! Hey there!"

"Man, from where I was, you looked totally scary! Is something up?"

"E-eh? …I looked scary?"

"Yeah, you had this really serious face," She made a face that was meant to resemble the other girl's face earlier, only to fail horribly that it ended up looking like a bloated blowfish. "If it wasn't for your hair, I would have thought you were a delinquent!"

"Is…is that so…" Was Akko's weedy response.

Satoko kept quiet and just watched both girls engage in conversation, all the while studying what might have transpired before they got there. From the looks of it, whatever happened between them, took place very recently.

"So, what are you doing here Akko? Not with Mari-chin today?" Her brown eyes sparked ignorantly as she asked. On the other hand, the girl in question tensed up in reaction.

"…no. She…er, left."

"Oh, so you were with her earlier?"

Being kept in the dark didn't seem to be a problem for the insensitive Tamami. She totally discarded the mood and the little gestures the former did to make her stray from the topic. Unfortunately, she couldn't get the hint. Heaven forgive her, but Satoko tried her best not to laugh out loud at how her girlfriend's tactlessness could make Akko come up with hilarious and distorted faces of panic, embarrassment and awkwardness all at the same time. Even she needed to wait for opportunities to pull that off.

I actually called Tamamin my girlfriend…?

"Yeah…but…um…" Akko tried to say, breaking her brief moment of realization. "We…we fought today."

"Eh—

"WHAT???" Satoko didn't care if she made a racket, nor did she mind to even keep her initial idea of staying quiet and have Tamami unknowingly grill out the details in check. That very issue was too much of a shock. The depressing weather didn't help in the slightest either…just what caused them to be in this mess?

………

To be continued…



Awright, I guess this will do for this chapter. The word count is still inconsistent, but the page count is the same. 8DDD Oh, "Kiiihh…" back there is some kind of reaction (Japanese-exclusive, in my opinion) that is expressed when making your face avoid contact into something…

…um, so yeah.

Mother is threatening me that she'll thrash my laptop if I don't stop typing. =)) Note that this isn't proofread so it freakin sucks and I haven't really checked for errors. XD But I'll get to that once I'm done hiding the lappie from mother.