I shot up and started coughing violently, flat out terrified about the dream I just woke from. I looked at the time and realized my alarm wouldn't go off for another hour. My heart was pounding against my ribcage, and I couldn't catch my breath no matter how hard I tried. As much as I wanted to forget it, I knew I had to recall the dream in order to decode it. I relived it mentally as I went to take a very cold shower for a very good reason.

I was in my classroom with Karma and Mito. Karma was threatening Mito with a tight grip around his throat, and I clung to his jacket as I tried to calm him down. Just like before, Mito fell to the ground with a forceful thud and Karma hugged me. Again, he pulled me into an ardent kiss with his strong arms around my waist. He lifted me closer to his height, and I supported my weight by throwing my arms around his neck. The same sensation shocked my nerves with some increased intensity.

But this time, we didn't stop.

Our tongues danced intensely, skipping between doing the tango and playing tug-of-war, and his hands slid down to my rear and thighs. I never noticed Mito leaving, but I knew he was gone when Karma slammed my back against my desk and moves his lips to my neck. I felt a strange heat in my gut with every expert move Karma pinned against my body. Sighs of unmistakable pleasure filled the room along with other M-18+ rated sounds filled the room, and I woke up before I could explode from embarrassment and something else.

By the time I was done recalling the dream in every detail, I found myself sitting in my tub, the shower head dousing me in pellets of ice cold water. My body was shaking, cold and afraid, but I didn't get out until all the aroused and embarrassed heat left. My alarm was buzzing by the time I eased my wrinkled figure from the tub and turned off the water.

I had an idea why I was feeling that way, but I refused to accept it. Accepting it would mean it would be true, and it just couldn't be true. Any excuse birthed in my mind, and I tried to make any of them a reality.

'Dreams just take parts from the day and mashed them together to make a random scene, right? It definitely has nothing to do with my personal feelings, right?'

'We've been acting like we're dating for so long, my brain was probably tricked into thinking we really ARE dating. It's not real.'

'I've never been romantically interested in anyone before. After participating in such a sudden romantic act, my body must be reacting strangely to it.'

'I'm straight. I mean, I have to be. People don't have their sexual realizations in adulthood, so I would've found that out before now, right? Right?!'

No matter how much I tried, I couldn't ignore the obvious. I pulled a towel around my body, hugging myself protectively while I stood up to clean a small section of the mirror for my face. I looked at my exhausted reflection, hair wet and tussled with red eyes staring right back, and took a very deep breath.

I had no choice, I knew it. I had to admit it, even if I didn't want to. I opened my mouth and spoke to my reflection with a weary voice.

"I'm in love with Karma."

Once I heard my own statement, foggy tears instantly ran down my cheeks. A choking, gasping sob erupted from my guy, and I slid to the cold, tile floor in tears. My knees tucked into myself, and I enveloped myself with the towel like a cocoon.

There, I said it. I had to believe what I as denying, and it hurt more than I thought it would. My weeping echoed off of the bathroom walls while I shamelessly cried over my crush like a high school girl.

"Was this part of your plan, Karma?" I asked out loud to no one in particular. "Did you plan on making me fall in love with you? Was it supposed to hurt this bad?"

My heart broke at the thought of Karma playing with my feelings for no reason, but then a flashback appeared to prove me wrong. I remembered when he held me so gently, giving me the best feeling in the world, and looked into my eyes sincerely. He smiled at me and spoke with his typically soothing voice.

"I would never do anything to hurt you."

Nostalgic warmth lifted my spirits, and I suddenly remembered that my alarm had been going off obnoxiously for at least ten minutes. Karma didn't say he'd pick me up that day, so I had to come up with a plan fast.

"So what'd you wanna talk about so suddenly?"

Sugino and I were at a nice cafe just after school hours. I asked if we could meet up, but I hadn't told him why. In junior high, he was my closest friend after Karma. And, for obvious reasons, I couldn't talk to my crush about what to do about my crush.

"Well, Sugino," I fiddled with my fingers anxiously, and my face heated up when I thought about what I had to say. "You remember Karma?"

"Oh, the rotten tomato?" Sugino shrugged and leaned back dismissively. "How could I forget? What'd he do this time?"

"No no, he didn't do anything," I laughed at his reaction. "There's just something I need advice for, but I can't ask him about it."

"Oh, sure thing, Nagisa. What's up?"

"I, um," I tried to talk, but anxiety built a dam in my throat. I knew I had to fight through; I didn't want to be like this around Karma forever. "I may have developed a...a small...tiny, little...crush...or something…"

"Woah! Really?!"

"Not so loud! We're in a public place!" I hushed him with raspy urgency.

"Sorry, sorry. I just...I have a lot of questions," he put his face in his hands and breathed deeply. "First: you're gay?"

"I guess."

"I feel like you should be a little more sure about what you're into."

"Look, I just found out yesterday. I'm just as surprised as you are."

"Yeah, I guess...I just never expected it," I could tell it was trying to settle in his mind, that it was taking some time to register. "Second: you have a crush on the sadistic tomato?"

"Is that what you call him?"

"Everyone in class did. Terasaka thought it was pretty funny."

I nodded in agreement and stared into my cup of tea longingly. Since I accepted my feelings, it seemed like most of my questions had been answered. Now I only had to figure out what to do from there.

"Was there a little happenstance that made you realize that you're into freaks?"

I, instead of dwelling on the insult of my crush/obsession, explained the entire situation. I told him about Mito's stalking, Karma's plan, and all the events since then. I even told him about the dream I had (sparing the details, or course) and the realization I had.

"Woah, that's...woah," I could tell he was trying to let everything sink in. "That's...that's a lot of gay."

"...Thanks, Sugino."

"So you need help confessing your feelings to your best friend, and that's why you came to me?" Sugino stated bluntly and pointed to himself with his thumbs confidently. "You've come to the right place! The Love Doctor is in and ready to work!"

I laughed and internally judged his true romantic skill. I didn't say anything, though, because I knew it might hurt his feelings.

"Alright, so you're already sixty percent through the RAP method," Sugino paused for dramatic effect, but I only gave him a very confused look in return. "You're supposed to ask what the RAP method is."

"I don't listen to rap."

"That's not what I meant, smartass," we laughed at the joking insult, and I let him continue. "RAP is an acronym I made up. It's for people like you who recently discovered love and don't know what to do about it. It's a short step-by-step program on how to deal with it.

"The first step is R: Realize. You need to realize what it is you're feeling and not live in denial. I don't think I need to explain this one for you, so I'll move on.

"The second step, A, is Acceptance. Realizing doesn't do anything if you keep denying it. You've also done this perfectly well, so I'll get to the point.

"The last step is P: Planning. You need to ask yourself some questions about what you want to do with your feelings. Do you want to begin dating, or would you rather stay friends? Are these feelings strong enough for you to want something more? Then, figure out where to go from there. Pretty simple, really."

"Wow, I guess you're right," I sipped my tea in thought. "Considering your vast knowledge in the field of romance, I'm surprised you're single."

"...It's a choice, okay?!"

"Sure, sure," I waved my hand dismissively and leaned back in my chair. "But what do I do? I don't know if he's even into guys. It's different when a girl likes a guy or vice versa because there's a much higher chance for the other to be romantically interested. But there's a lower population of homosexual people in the world, so-"

"Nagisa, shut up," Sugino interrupted. "Get that weak ass sauce out of my salad because who cares? If he's willing to make out with you and not be phased, I think he'll be okay with actually dating you. Hell, I think he'd even go with making your dreams come true."

"Sh-Shut up!" I swear the temperature outside shot up ten degrees, and I was just reacting to it.

"I think your best bet is to tell him," Sugino merely laughed at my floundering before continuing. "I'm not really the best with homo relationships, even if it's no different from hetero relationships, so I suggest talking to Maehara."

"Maehara's gay?!"

"...Didn't you know this? He started going out with Isogai years ago."

"Isogai is gay, too?! And they're dating?!"

"...You really are clueless."

I defended myself rightfully; why would I obsess myself over everyone else's personal lives? That's their business, not mine.

"Don't worry about it, man," he leaned his elbows on the table and surprised me with his suddenly stern tone. "He's not going to hate you or anything. Rejection hurts, but that's the most it'll do. I can almost guarantee that he'll be up for it anyway, so you don't need to worry about it."

"...Alright. Thanks, Sugino." He nodded and smiled at me, giving me confidence. My phone started buzzing in my pocket, so I slipped it out and felt my body tense up. Sugino looked at me knowingly and mouthed 'answer it' very exaggeratedly.

"H-Hey, Karma!" I spoke into my phone, tugging on my pants and smiling sheepishly. "What's up?"

"You sound happy," Karma's deep voice gave me a happy flutter in my chest, and I squirmed in my chair fighting down a giggle.

"Oh, do I? I've just been relaxing," I tried to sound normal, but I knew I was failing. I felt Sugino's judgemental glare, and I actively chose to ignore it.

"Well, then what I have to tell you will make you even happier."

"Ooh, really? Tell me what's what, my tasty strawberry shortcake.~" Sugino rolled his eyes and made a gagging motion.

"You don't have to worry about Mito anymore."

My stomach dropped and my smile failed. I shouldn't have felt so bad; that was the goal all along. But I couldn't help the sinking feeling. "Why?"

"I think he's scared of me now," Karma continued, oblivious to my disappointment. "I went to your school's principal today and asked to speak to Mito. I could do that because my politician shit job kinda deals with monitoring school board management, so no one asked. The second he saw me, he tensed up and freaked out."

"You didn't hurt him, right?"

"Of course not. Have a little more faith in me," he said, mocking an offended tone. "I just told him how he was making you uncomfortable and asked him politely to stop. I think he just realized how not-okay he was acting and decided to stop."

"Oh, that's fortunate," I twirled one of the longer locks of hair by my sideburns. "So...he's okay and he won't stalk me anymore?"

"Yup! Mission success!" I could practically hear his fist pump through the phone, and I laughed at the thought. "Since he's off your tail, he'll probably stop trying to nose into your love life. In that case, we could stop with this charade if you want-"

"No!"

My horrified scream caused several heads to turn towards me, shooting me concerned and annoyed glares alike. Sugino, who was too busy playing with something on his place, shot his head up so fast he hit the back of his head on his chair and writhed in agony. I quietly apologized to everyone before returning my attention to Karma.

"I-I mean...I don't think we should stop yet…" I spoke in a hushed whisper. "I mean...what if he happens to see us not romantic and stuff? He might think we broke up, and…"

"So you want me to be your fake boyfriend until, what? Until he moves on?"

"W-Well...I, um…" I looked at Sugino, eyes pleading for help. He cocked an eyebrow, and I dramatically mouthed 'he wants to stop'.

He held up a finger and fished for something in his pocket. He pulled out a folded, crumpled piece of paper and handed it to me. When I unfolded it, my eyes brightened, and I mouthed 'thank you'.

"I thought we could go to the fireworks festival this weekend," I tried making my voice sound casual as if I weren't reading off a promotional poster. "I heard some of my kids talking about it, so Mito should be there. Fireworks are super romantic, too, so I figured…"

There was a long string of silence before I heard Karma chuckle from the other side. "Sure, sounds like fun. When does it start?"

"The fireworks start at eight, but we should meet up earlier to get a good spot. I think they have snack booths and stuff around, so we don't need to get dinner before."

"I'll pick you up at seven, 'kay? Text me the details later."

"Yeah!"

"I gotta go. Work and shit like that. See ya then."

"Yeah! Sure! Bye!" I hung up reluctantly and smiled at my screen. I laughed and swayed slightly until I noticed Sugino staring at me with his suggestive smirk. "...What?"

"You preparing to get laid?"

"Sugino!"

He laughed at my flustered reaction, and I threw small chunks of my bread at him. With his hands out in defense, he kept trying to convince me to 'practice abstinence until we're both ready,' and I was ready to punch him in the naval.

We spent the rest of the day hanging out, and I was starting to feel a lot less overwhelmed. I was able to keep my mind off Karma enough to go home and finish grading the tests. The next day at school, I was feeling refreshed as I passed back everyone's tests.

"Yo, Nagisa…" I looked up from my desk and smiled at one of my students.

"Yeah, what's up? You have a question?"

"Yeah, uh," he looked at his test with a creased forehead.

"So I heard you started dating some dude," I quirked my eyebrow and nodded slowly, mildly afraid this confrontation had something to do with Mito. "And I heard you were pretty happy with him, right?"

"Is there a point to this, Yosuke?"

"Well, I was just wondering because," Yosuke turned the front of his test towards me, and my face began to pale, "there are a lot of drawings on here that look like they used to be hearts?"

I tried thinking of an excuse, but he continued before I could talk.

"I'm not into dudes, Nagisa. Also, this is kind of illegal."

I threw my palm onto my face, nearly stabbing myself with my pen. I angrily reminded myself how much love sucks while truthfully explaining (leaving out most details, of course) why those hearts were in no way meant for him. He left satisfied when I told him I'd change the test grade from a fifty-four to a one hundred.

Even though it wasn't directly his fault, I blamed Karma for everything.