Finally! Thanks to all those who reviewed... This is the last chapter.


They were silent on the way back to Kirino's apartment. To be fair, Kyousuke did try to start a conversation, but every topic that he attempted to start with was swallowed by this uncomfortable silence that arrived during their earlier conversation and insisted on clinging to them throughout their walk.

It also didn't help that Kirino kept shooting him these glares that made him feel like it was he who had done something wrong, when clearly it should be Kirino, who seemed too fond of keeping monumental, life-changing decisions to herself and only revealing them at the very last possible moment. Actually, if he thought about it, Kirino didn't even inform Kyousuke about her plans to go to America the first time around. Kyousuke had accidentally found out on his own. And this time, Kirino might have told him by herself, but only when she had finished talking to everybody else about it.

For a brief moment, Kyousuke considered breaking into Kirino's apartment during one of her classes and rummaging through her things, burning that damned plane ticket he was sure she had tucked somewhere safe. He shook his head, trying to dispel the stupid idea, and only managed to earn himself a weird look from his sister.

"So," he began a few minutes after they let themselves in the apartment. He moved aside Kirino's bag which she had dumped in the middle of the narrow hallway and watched as she got him a glass of tea. "Thanks," he muttered absently, momentarily distracted. He managed to finish his glass in three huge gulps and turned around to find Kirino sitting on the couch, rubbing her feet.

"Those shoes are too tight," she complained.

"Why didn't you tell them?" he asked, shoving her feet aside to sit beside her. Kirino made to move her feet to the floor, but he grabbed them instead and placed them in his lap. "You should have complained or something. You spent nearly an hour wearing them."

Kirino said nothing but hummed in contentment when he started to rub the heel of her left foot in slow circles.

"You're surprisingly good at that," she said.

"Yeah?" he replied, knowing that he wasn't making any sense but not wanting to clarify anyway. Instead, he dropped her left foot back in his lap and started on the other one.

"Your only talent," she answered back, giving him a lazy grin. Too tired to bother reacting to her taunt, he looked down at his hands and watched as they rubbed her feet, seemingly instinctively and hopefully soothing away the pain. He hadn't noticed how much time had passed until he glanced at Kirino and found her head and upper back resting on couch's arm rest, in a position that must surely be uncomfortable.

Gently easing her feet off his lap and back on to the couch, he stood up and yawned. He looked around the quiet apartment and wondered what he could do. He was tempted to look around for the plane ticket his sister must have around somewhere, but he quickly discarded the notion, having no idea what he would do if he did actually manage to find it.

Finally, he decided to go back to his own apartment. He quickly settled Kirino into a more comfortable position, by now used to his sister falling asleep at unexpected moments and in far more inconvenient places than her own couch. He left a note on the kitchen counter and stared at his sister for a moment before finally closing the door behind him.


He went back late the next day, unannounced, and found her packing. The sight made him frown and a strange feeling that he couldn't quite define yet made him want to grit his teeth and curl his palms into fists.

"Hey," he said in greeting, voice a little too loud in the quiet of Kirino's room.

Kirino looked up from where she was crouched on the floor. "Hi. Can you help me bring this downstairs?" she said, pointing to the luggage in front of her.

Kyousuke glanced at it and imagined throwing it out of the window. "You want to grab a bite outside? And maybe we can stop by the video rental store, there's this movie I've been wanting to check out."

"Dinner and a movie." She gave him an amused look. "Are you paying?"

"It's my turn to pay anyway," he called over his shoulder, having already turned around to exit the room.

"Of course it is, idiot," she said and followed him.

It was almost midnight when they returned, their moods cheerful and relaxed. They had spent longer than they needed to at the fast food place a few blocks away, with Kyousuke listening to Kirino's stories, devouring most of her food on top of his own. Kirino claimed that she wasn't that hungry and was already content with slowly munching on the fries that she had also ordered.

He heard Kirino laugh at something he'd said as he closed the door behind him. He turned around to find that she hadn't moved from the entry way and was facing him, looking up at him with a smile on her lips and on her eyes too.

Without thinking about it, Kyousuke moved forward. It was a gentle meeting of mouths, their lips were closed and his eyes had, at some point, also drifted shut. The slight pressure of his hand on her waist matched that of the pressure between their lips, soft but not at all tentative, just the feeling that this was something not out of the ordinary at all. Like they did this every day and therefore felt none of the urgency and nervousness that usually came along with first kisses.

That was a kiss, was his first thought as they both pulled apart, reluctance making their movements slower than usual. Somewhere in the back of his mind, he knew something huge had just happened, something that told him he needed to stop impulsively following his instincts and just think. But it seemed so much easier to move forward again and just rest his forehead on hers, their lips almost touching. From here, he could easily kiss her again if he wanted too, and he knew, from the look in her eyes and the way that she was still smiling at him, that she wanted it too.

"This isn't awkward at all," he whispered, out of the blue.

"No, it isn't," she readily agreed.

He didn't know what to say to that so he settled for kissing her again. This one lasted a bit longer, but it was also just as gentle and sweet as their first. The kiss naturally ended and Kirino took a step backward.

"Is this about me leaving?" she asked quietly.

Oh. He had forgotten about that. "I'm not sure," he answered honestly.

Kirino gave him a long, scrutinizing look and he stared right back at her, not knowing what he should do. "I'm going to sleep now," she said, still looking at him. "You can have the couch."

He watched as she climbed up the stairs and waited for a few minutes before her door had closed before slipping out of her apartment. He'd then spent a few minutes standing uneasily just outside Kirino's building, wondering where he could go. For some reason, he felt unwilling to return to his apartment.

Pulling out his phone, he quickly sent a message to Manami.

Are you still awake?

He frowned as he checked the time.

Sorry. You're probably already asleep. Call you tomorrow.

He placed his phone back in his pocket and, feeling like he had no other choice, started walking back to his apartment. He had just closed the door behind him when his phone rang.

"Hello?"

"Kyousuke? Is everything alright?"

"Manami? Why are you still awake?" he asked, surprised evident in his voice.

"I was studying for the- Never mind. What's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong," he quickly replied and took a quick look around. Kyousuke absently waved at him from his spot in front of the television.

"Please tell me, Kyou-chan."

He sighed as he reached his room. "Kirino's leaving. For America. It's real this time."

He heard Manami take a sharp intake of breath. "Oh, Kyou-chan. When?"

"A few days from now."

"And you just found out?"

"Yesterday. I didn't tell you immediately because-"

"It's okay, Kyou-chan. I understand. When is she coming back?"

"She's not sure. It could be a few months, or a few years, depending on how well her career goes."

Kyousuke stiffened as his mind suddenly began to process the fact that Kirino was going to leave. He'd known since yesterday, but it was just now that the idea was starting to sink in. All of a sudden, he felt a little angry.

"Manami, I think I need to hang up now."

"Kyou-chan?"

"I just need some time to think. I'll call you tomorrow, okay?î"

Manami sighed. "Alright, Kyou-chan. Despite what happened, just remember, I'm still your best friend. You can always talk to me."

He swallowed as he heard the sincerity and concern in her voice. "I know. That's why I came to you first with this. Thanks, Manami," he said before he hung up.

The slight anger he'd felt earlier was still present. His brow furrowed and he thought of the kiss he'd shared with Kirino earlier.

Kirino. His sister.

It had felt so natural to just close the distance between them and step into that kiss. Like nothing wrong was happening at all and that-

And maybe that was why he was feeling this anger. He had only just started to acknowledge his feelings for Kirino. And she was leaving before he could even have the chance to explore this... whatever this was that had just been revealed to them. Surely, this wasn't something new. They had probably been building up to this for years now, and he had probably been just too thick or too stubborn to see it for what it really was. His head hurt as it occurred to him that what they'd been doing these past few years could actually be called dating, and all in all, their earlier kiss was probably the logical next step in their relationship.

He didn't know what he was going to do. But he knew that he needed to figure things out soon if he didn't want to lose Kirino.


The day before she was scheduled to leave, Kirino hosted a farewell party with her friends.

"Did you get the drinks?"

"Yes, I got the drinks," he said, shutting the door behind him with his foot. His eyes shifted towards Kirino as she glared at him.

"You're late."

"No, I'm not," he automatically argued, even if he was a few minutes behind schedule. His mind flashed back to earlier that morning when he'd woken up beside Kirino, limbs entangled, and he had proceeded to wake her up with a kiss. He'd gotten kicked out of bed but it had been worth it to see Kirino's face red with embarrassment. The kisses they'd shared so far had all been chaste and sweet. Each time it happened, Kyousuke waited for the guilt and the remorse that he imagined should be there, but it never came. Instead, he found himself dividing his attention between revelling in how brilliant each kiss was and in trying to quell the hunger he could feel burning underneath each kiss. They weren't ready for anything more, yet.

He grinned at Kirino and she scowled at him, a light blush staining her cheeks as if she knew what he was thinking about. "Idiot," she muttered under her breath.

"Kyousuke-shi," a familiar voice called out. "Do you need any help with that?"

Kyousuke shifted his eyes away from Kirino and saw Saori standing near one of the windows. Behind her, he could see Kuroneko gazing contemplatively out the window.

"You're already here," he said in greeting.

"Don't look so surprised," Kirino snapped as she grabbed one of the bags in his hand. "You're late."

Kirino's other guests started to drift in, one by one. Kyousuke spent most of the time just sitting down on one of the couches he had somehow come to think of as his and staring at his sister as she expertly managed the crowd.

"You're awfully quiet," Kuroneko said as she sat down beside him.

"Well, you've been quiet too," he replied, feeling a bit defensive.

"It's because I've been quietly gathering information from all these..." she paused and scanned the room, "creatures."

Kyousuke's response was to blink at her twice. "You haven't changed at all, have you?"

"I see no need to," she sniffed. She made a motion as if she was going to stand up and leave him.

"Okay, look, I'm sorry," he said, quickly grabbing her arm. To his side, he saw Kirino shooting him a glare before returning to her own conversation.

Kuroneko huffed but settled back down beside him. "So, have you finally manned up and told Kirino about how you felt about her? Before she left?"

"What the- I don't-" Kyousuke spluttered, trying very hard to gather back enough of his mind to respond properly. "I'm not sure I get what you mean," he finally said.

"You know what I mean," Kuroneko said and smirked at him.

Kyousuke squirmed in his seat, suddenly feeling very apprehensive. "How did you know?"

"I didn't. But you just confirmed it," she said, sounding almost happy, and Kyousuke had to restrain himself against the urge to strangle her.

"I didn't tell her anything," he grumbled under his breath. "I kissed her."

For a precious moment, Kyousuke got to see what a dumbfounded Kuroneko looked like. He grinned at her before realizing what he'd just confessed. "Oh, shit."

Kuroneko scowled at him. "You're lying," she accused.

"Yes, yes I am," he quickly agreed.

"Oh, you're not lying."

"No, no, I'm lying. I was definitely lying," he said, nodding vehemently. "Please believe me. Or I mean, don't believe me. Don't believe what i just said. Because I was totally lying-"

"Moron," Kuroneko cut him off. "Stop talking, you're making my head hurt."

She glanced at Saori, who was somehow blending in well with the rest of Kirino's friends, and called her over.

"This isn't happening," he said, voice muffled by his hands which he'd covered his face with.

"What's wrong?" Saori asked, sitting on Kyousuke's other side.

"Kyousuke confessed his illicit, illegal, and incredibly unconventional love for Kirino by kissing her," Kuroneko bluntly replied.

"Shut up," he hissed and strove for calm.

Saori looked intrigued. "That was very brave of you Kyousuke-shi." She sounded pleased.

"You're all reacting wrongly."

"You're the one who's reacting wrongly," Kuroneko said.

"What? Well, of course I am,. I mean, she's my sis-"

"That's not what I meant."

"Huh?"

"What she's trying to say, Kyousuke-shi, is that you shouldn't be ashamed of it."

"Ashamed?! There are so many things I should be feeling and I think that being ashamed should be one of the last things I have to worry about right now."

"Calm down, Kyousuke-shi. I didn't mean to offend you."

"I thought you'd be more accepting of this, given how the two of you have been dancing around each other for a long time now."

Kyousuke stared at Kuroneko blankly. "What?"

"Years even. Most likely before I've even met the two of you. It's amazing how you can be so stupid."

Kyousuke blinked at her. They had noticed?

"I'm not stupid," he said absently, still trying to measure just how dense he must have been to have missed this.

"Hmm, we surely have a different view of things," Kuroneko replied as she stood up. "I'm leaving now. I have to write about this in my blog."

Kyousuke quickly rose at her words. "You have a blog? Well, of course you do, but I don't think you should write about this!" he yelled after her.

Saori tapped him on his shoulder. "Don't worry, Kyousuke-shi. She's just teasing you. I think."

"But..."

"I'll call you later, okay?"

He weakly nodded at her and watched as she started saying goodbye to Kirino and her other guests. Feeling like he needed a break, he trudged up the stairs, hoping that no one would notice him, and locked himself inside Kirino's room.


"Open the door, you idiot," he heard Kirino yell a few hours later.

He quickly jumped off the bed and rushed to unlock the door. "Is the party over?" he asked, putting on what he hoped looked like an innocent smile.

"The last guest just left," she replied, stepping into the room and glancing around suspiciously. "What were you doing here?"

"I... felt like I needed a break. Too much noise."

"Uh-huh," she said, obviously unconvinced. "Kuroneko found out, didn't she?"

His jaw dropped open. "What- Why do you know that?"

"Saori."

"Ah. Right."

"Hey," Kirino said, her voice soothing him as she stepped closer to him. "It's okay. They won't tell."

"I know. I mean, I know we can trust them with this. But-" he paused as he ran a hand through his hair, "That's the problem, isn't it? I mean, everything's okay."

"How is that a problem?" Kirino asked and folded her arms in front of her.

"Look, Saori and Kuroneko, they found out about us but they're okay with it. They shouldn't be okay with it. I shouldn't be okay with it too, but with these past few days, I think it's quite apparent that I'm more than fine with it. And you..."

"I'm fine with it," she said, staring straight at him. Kyousuke sucked in a quick breath at the intensity of her gaze.

"Yeah. Yeah, you are," he said softly and closed the distance between them. One of his hands slipped to her cheek and he watched as she closed her eyes and kissed him.

"It's just so easy," he murmured against her lips. "We should be feeling, I don't know, upset or something. But it just seems so… easy. Natural. Not upset at all."

Kirino smirked at him. "You choose the strangest times to think too much."

"Huh."

"Come with me," she said, the offer startling them both. Her voice sounded confident and sure but there was a look on her face that didn't belong, one that was filled with trepidation and something else he couldn't quite define.

"What?"

"I'm not going to repeat myself."

"You're leaving tomorrow."

"So... if it was next month or maybe next week, you would come with me?"

Kyousuke stiffened and desperately thought of an answer. He knew he'd taken too long when Kirino's mouth tightened into a firm line.

"What? Kirino!" he shouted, feeling indignant as she suddenly shoved him out of the room. "What the hell is wrong with you?"

"I need to finish packing," he heard Kirino yell from the other side of the door. "You need to leave now."

"I'm not leaving until you tell me what's wrong," he firmly stated.

He heard a thud.

"Did you just kick the door?" he asked incredulously. "You did, didn't you?"

Another thud.

He turned around and leant against the door, the solidity of it against his back somehow helping him to clear his mind a bit.

"Tickets," he began, and licked his lips, feeling exceedingly nervous all of a sudden. "I- Kirino, I have a ticket."

The door suddenly flew open and if he hadn't been also partially leaning on the wall beside the door, he'd have fallen flat on his back.

"You stole my ticket?" she said, furious.

Kyousuke fervently shook his head from side to side. "No, you don't understand. I mean, I bought a ticket. A plane ticket. For me."

Kirino's eyebrows furrowed. "Where are you going?" she asked.

He hesitated for a moment before finally admitting, "America."

Kirino quickly looked him up and down. "With what money?"

"Hey!" he replied, feeling a bit affronted. "I do have some saved up, you know. Well, had. "

"When did you buy them?"

"I-"

"No, don't answer that." Kirino frowned at him. "Why?" she finally asked.

"Because..." he trailed off as he thought of how he could explain himself. "It was a spur of the moment thing." He winced as he remembered the incident. "An expensive spur of the moment thing," he added.

She shot him a frustrated but somewhat amused look. "You could have gotten it cheaper if you'd bought them earlier."

"But you just told me about this last week!"

"Mm."

Kyousuke sighed and cast his eyes upward.

"Were you ever going to tell me?"

His gaze snapped back to Kirino. "I don't know. I mean, I wasn't even sure if I was going. I just- it made me feel better, you know? It sounded right at that time," he said, well aware that he was rambling.

Kirino shifted his eyes away from him and stared hard at his hand which was gripping the door frame. "And now?" she asked eventually, still avoiding his gaze.

"I- you weren't even supposed to know," he sighed. Kirino grimaced but he continued. "My whole life is here, Kirino."

Kyousuke paused as he went over his last spoken words. Yes, his whole life was here. But Kirino was scheduled to leave tomorrow. And that, he concluded as his brow furrowed further, could only mean that his whole life was here today, but tomorrow would be a different case entirely. Tomorrow, Kirino would be leaving, and Kyousuke would be left standing at the airport lobby, staring up at that damned airplane-

"I can't- Kirino, I can't do this," he said.

"Then don't," she bit out. He could see that she was about to shut him out again, but he pressed on before she could do so.

"No, that not what I meant. You can't leave. Stay. You have to stay," he said, rubbing his eyes wearily. He was so tired and his head was hurting, clearly uncomfortable with this sudden focus on thoughts that he'd for so many years ignored.

She finally turned his gaze toward him. "I can't. I have to go, this is-"

"Then, I'm coming with you," he cut off. He did his best to look firm and confident but his mind was jumbled full of half-formed thoughts – where was he going to stay, where would he find a job, what about his friends, Manami, and- oh god, their parents.

"I'll talk to Dad. And Mom, too," she suddenly said.

"How did you know-"

"I know you," she stated but hesitated before continuing, "At least… I think I do. Are you sure about this?"

"Yes," he said determinedly.

"Things might not always be this easy."

"I know," he replied, looking at Kirino. "We can figure it out there. I… we need more time to sort things out, Kirino. I can't just let you leave like that, not when this thing's just started and-"

"It's okay. I understand," Kirino interrupted. "Same here," she added a bit awkwardly.

Kyousuke gave a short, nervous laugh. "Good," he said, feeling incredibly relieved. "That's… good. Okay. More than okay," he said lamely and sighed.

Kirino smiled at him, obviously amused. She tilted her head slightly to one side. "Help me pack?" she asked, not waiting for his answer as she turned around and stepped back into her room.

He stared at her and wondered if he was doing the right thing. There was still time, he could still turn back and pretend that this never happened. But Kirino… she would never forgive him. And he wouldn't be able to forgive himself too if he just gave up on this. It was far from what he expected his life would be, and he wasn't naïve enough to think that there wouldn't be consequences – the possibilities of which could only be huge and disastrous. But it was what he wanted, more than anything and there was no use in denying it, and as long as Kirino wanted this too, then he needed to see it through to the end.

"Sure. But you have to help me pack later too," he said and followed her into the room.

END