He was so quick, Mami didn't notice until it was too late.

One minute, her back was warm from the afternoon sun, and the room was still and silent. The next minute, in a flurry of movement, she had her back to the cool metal of a cabinet, and her eyes were reflected in twin pools of the deepest black.

Her breath caught in her throat.

Asaoka was smiling, but this was nothing like his usual smiles. This expression was lazy, a touch flinty, and a little something else that Mami couldn't quite put her finger on.

And he was leaning over her, completely engulfing her smaller frame in his. He was so close she could smell his laundry soap.

Mami refused to tear her eyes from his, even though the compulsion to do so was strong. She would have been blushing furiously if she wasn't thus captivated.

"Do you know what you are asking for?" His breath ghosted softly over her cheek.

"I must." Came her seemingly composed reply. She was shaking inside.

"How do you know I'll say yes?" He pressed closer. The cabinet would not yield, and oddly, Mami wasn't sure if she wanted it to.

"Because I'm sure you won't refuse."

Asaoka wasn't even thinking anymore. That night, when he questions the impulse, all he can remember are her huge, doe-like eyes, the soft glow of afternoon light, and a wisp of her jet-black hair resting innocently on the swell of her cheek.

He raised a hand to brush this errant curl behind her ear, and his fingers passed over the soft skin of her cheek. She drew a shuddering breath, and her eyelids fluttered shut, breaking eye contact.

The spell broken, he withdrew, as hurriedly as he'd advanced. His senses were coming back to him as he retreated to a far corner of the room and avoided her gaze.

The dust seemed to pause, as both stood in their respective corners gathering their wits about them.