Although Band had been going a lot better with Hiwatari's help, the same could not be said for English. Their teacher had assigned their topics awhile ago and neither Risa nor Hiwatari could agree on a plot. They had been assigned to write a short essay about "The Perfect White Day Present." Risa, being the romantic she was, said that she had the perfect idea. However, Hiwatari, being the realist he was, didn't agree at all. They argued back and forth, Risa attempting to protect her idea, and Hiwatari attempting to shoot it down. They weren't making any progress at all.
"Alright, Mr. I-Know-Everything, what's your idea?"
Hiwatari sat back in his chair, a small smirk etched on his face. He looked up at Risa with a 'my-idea's-better-than-yours' stare and proceeded to speak.
"A letter. Yes, a letter in a white envelope."
Risa stared at her blue-haired partner with an 'are-you-serious?' look. She waited until she saw him shift uncomfortably in his seat before she spoke again.
"You're joking right? That's got to be the most pathetic thing I've ever heard!"
"It's not pathetic, it's simplistic. You're idea is too over-the-top. I mean, come on, a kitty with a white bow on it? You're thinking to extravagantly."
"You're not thinking extravagantly enough! Your idea is to simple and plain. I mean, I could see it if the letter came with another gift, but all by itself? It doesn't stand out and it'd get tossed aside and forgotten far too easily."
"Maybe from someone like you, but any other girl would at least have the decency to read it. If a man can express his feelings in an exquisite way through writing, rather than a material gift, shouldn't he go with his strengths instead of trying to play his weaknesses?"
"Excuse you! I would read the letter, I never said I wouldn't! But if this guy is so good with words, how do I know he's sincere and not just jotting down some romantic crap that he found quoted on the Internet? Giving someone a gift shows that you put a lot of thought into it and wanted to get them something meaningful and symbolic."
"The same can be said about a man who buys a gift! What if he went around and asked a bunch of women what the perfect gift would be and, based off of those responses, he went out and bought something. He wouldn't have had to think at all, just ask around. Face it, Miss Harada: the same things can be true for both our situations. The only difference we have is that mine is simple and yours is not."
"Simple is so boring, though."
"Not if it's done the right way."
The two continued to argue, somehow still finding something to argue about. They were both stubborn and dead-set on using their idea. However, in the end, and after many weird looks from their classmates, they both agreed on writing their own essays and seeing which one the teacher liked best.
In the auditorium, the entire class gathered around the stage. Riku made it a point to stand as far away from Dark as possible until they had to be on stage. Ms. Love walked out from backstage and clapped her hands, gaining everyone's full attention. She told everyone who wasn't required to be at yesterdays after school rehearsal about the progress they made. Some students clapped, while others just nodded their heads. Ms. Love informed everyone that there would be a quick run-through of yesterday's scene (Act 3, Scene 1) and then the tech-crew would begin gathering props and making the set backstage.
Riku and Dark walked on stage after Ms. Love took her seat in the audience. They held their scripts, skimming through them one last time, and then they began. Riku still couldn't believe how quickly they were expected to memorize their lines, but she discarded that thought as the scene began. Both her and Dark had managed to run through everything perfectly, up to a certain point. However, just as Riku read Miranda's line about asking Ferdinand to be her husband, Ms. Love stopped everything.
"Stop, stop! There's something missing from this scene. It needs something more to make it complete. I think... I think we need to add something to the script!"
Ms. Love carried herself on stage and grabbed Riku and Darks scripts from the floor. She pulled a pen out of her pocket and scribbled something down. She handed them back their scripts and told them to back up a few lines and start again. They were allowed to look at their scripts, only to adjust to the small change that was added.
"MIRANDA: My husband, then?
FERDINAND: Ay, with a heart as willing as bondage e'er of freedom: here's my hand.
MIRANDA: And mine, with my heart in't; and now farewell till half an hour hence."
Riku and Dark both glanced down at their script to see what they were to do next. Dark, already knowing what to do, discarded his script and moved closer to Riku. Riku glanced over the words written under her last line and had to do a double-take. She stared, obviously horrified, and moved away from Dark.
"Ms. Love, what kind of an addition is this?"
"Why, it's a necessary one. Don't you feel that a kiss between the two lovers would be appropriate at this point?"
"No! No, I do not!"
"Class, what do you think?"
The entire class looked up to the stage as they nodded their heads in agreement with their teacher. Riku let the horrified look on her face amplify, and she almost let out a deafening scream. There was no way on Earth she would kiss Dark. No. Freakin'. Way.
"I won't do it!"
"You will if you want to pass this class."
Riku absolutely hated that Ms. Love could use her grade to control her. It was almost an abuse of power, and some could probably argue that it was. Still, Riku hung her head in defeat and gritted her teeth. Ms. Love instructed them to take it from a few lines back, yet again, and they did so. Riku spit out her lines like venom and when it was time for the kiss, she let Dark do all the work. He came towards her and lowered himself slightly, so she could kiss him with ease. He puckered up his lips and waited for Riku to close the distance between them. Riku unwillingly took a step towards him and puckered up her lips as well. She moved her head forward ever so slowly and stopped as soon as she could barely feel his lips. Dark, being unsatisfied, moved in just a bit more, and made the kiss real and complete.
"Ew, Dark, what was that?"
"That was a kiss."
"No, why'd you lean in deeper? My lips were touching yours!"
"Yeah, barely! We're supposed to be lovers, but no one would believe that by the way you were "kissing" me."
"Enough! Miss Harada, I know it's going to take some getting used to, but by the end of the week, you'll have to settle in a comfortable kiss with him and make it last for at least fifteen seconds. Do you understand?"
Riku nodded her head and bit her lip. She would give anything to slap the smirk off of Dark's face. Ms. Love ended the rehearsal and sent the rest of the class backstage to start building the set and get things set up. Riku hopped off stage and stuffed her script in her bag. She might not have been tech-crew, but she wanted to go backstage and do some work. Actually, she wanted to do anything other than stand out here with Dark. Just as she was about to go up the stairs that led backstage, Dark grabbed her arm and stopped her.
"Hey, wait a minute."
"What do you want?"
"Look, I know you and I got off to a rough start, but I really do want this to work. I really do like you."
Riku looked into his eyes and was searching for any indication that he was sincere. He almost pulled off an honest look, but Riku caught the small smirk that was pulling at his lips. This was just his way of winning her over, seeing as how his normal antics didn't work like they did on other women. She wasn't going to stand for it.
"Pft. Bite me."
On that note, Riku yanked her arm free from his grasp and marched off backstage. Dark couldn't believe that she had just said that to him. Where did he go wrong? He sounded convincing and there was no way his eyes were betraying him. Whatever gave him away, he wasn't happy. He grabbed his bag and stormed out of the auditorium, not caring that class didn't end for another twenty minutes. Principal Sakamoto wasn't going to be happy with him at all.
After class was over, Riku grabbed her bag and bolted out of the auditorium. She was thankful that school was finally over. She took out her little black planner book and looked at it to see what homework she had. The only class that she had homework in was History. She still had that horrid project she had to finish and she remembered that she hadn't worked on it since Daisuke gave her that painting. To make matters worse, she also realized that it was due tomorrow.
She sprinted down the hallway and kept on going until she reached the library. She pushed open the door and trotted over to the history section. She began the hunt for any book that even looked like it had anything to do with her topic. She pulled book after book from the library shelves until she had so many that she couldn't even see over them. She stacked them all in her arms and attempted to walk over to one of the tables. She almost tripped and dropped them several times, but she finally set them down on the hardwood surface. She then took a seat in one of the chairs at her table and began to flip through the pages of each book. She took out her notebook and began to jot down anything she thought relevant.
She kept up with her note-taking process for five hours. She looked up from her current book and looked outside the library window, noticing the dark sky and twinkling stars. She couldn't believe that she'd been here long enough for it to get dark out. Just then, a door could be heard opening and closing, and Riku turned her attention to the entrance. She saw a spiky-haired boy walk in with a small stack of books. He dropped them off at the front desk, clearly checking them back in. She recognized the boy as Daisuke. He looked over to where she was sitting and was surprised to find her buried in a stack of books.
"Miss Harada? What are you doing here so late?"
Riku looked down at the book in her hands and at the others stacked in unorganized piles around the desk. She let out a tired sigh and shifted in her seat.
"I'm still working on that project for History. I've been so busy working on the play for Drama that I haven't gotten anything done for this project since the last time you and I were here."
"Oh, wow. I know it's tough to get much of anything done when you've got Ms. Love as a teacher. I remember taking her Drama class freshman year - I almost failed English because I was so busy working on the play. It takes up a lot of time."
"Yeah, you're telling me. I don't know how I'm ever going to get this done. I've only gone through half of these books and I haven't found nearly enough information to write my essay. I've got all the stuff for the poster project, but the written essay is holding me back."
"That's usually the hardest part. If you'd like, I could help you get more information. I just finished writing my paper up."
"You'd really do that, Daisuke?"
"Of course! I'd be glad to help you. Now, what's your project about again?"
"Japan's involvement in World War II."
"Alright then, I'll see what I can find."
Daisuke pulled up a chair and cracked open a book. He spent the rest of the night there with Riku, digging through books, and taking notes. When the clock struck midnight, the two teens gathered up the books and put them away. As Daisuke helped Riku gather up her things, she couldn't help but thank him.
"Thank you so much, Diasuke. I've got more than enough information to write my essay now. I couldn't have done it without you."
Daisuke let a small blush adorn his face as they walked out of the library. He scratched the back of his head out of nervousness as they walked back up to their rooms.
"It was no trouble, Miss Harada. I'm glad I could help. Try not to stay up too late writing, though."
Riku smiled brightly at him and nodded her head. Before either of them knew it, they were at their doors. Riku thanked him one more time before opening her door and setting to work on her essay. When she walked in, she noticed Risa sprawled out on her bed, a notebook and pen resting right by her. She grabbed the notebook and saw the title "The Perfect White Day Present." She skimmed the page and a half of writing and looked down at her sister.
"That's so cute, Risa. It's just like you to write something so girly."
She gently tossed the notebook back onto her sister's bed and sat down at their joint desk. She pulled out her notes from the library and some fresh sheets of paper. Then, she began to diligently write her essay.
