Kano's Birthday!

Kido's POV

Here I am walking to school as usual, only half awake. I've been lacking sleep after talking to Kano three days ago. I kept thinking about Kano. I feel like a bitch now after realizing how much pain Kano has been enduring. Kano is always smiling, so I had no idea at all. I'm such an idiot. I always wanted to be alone after my parents' deaths , but Kano...His mom died giving birth to him. He never had a chance to get to know her. I feel so...bad for him...But his father, though. He's such a jackass! I wish I could just go up to his face and point that out. He can't just blame Kano for his mother's death.

"Oi, Leader!" I turned around and saw Kano. He's smiling as always. "Morning." I replied as I yawned. "Are you sleepy? If you want, I can let you sleep on m-ouch!" Before I let him finish his sentence, I flicked his forehead. "Hey. You know I was joking, right?" He was fake pouting while rubbing his forehead. He looked so funny right now. I just kept walking. I didn't want him to see me almost laugh...

"Let's go, Kano. I don't want to be late, because of you." I said with a small smile.

"Okay!" He grabbed my hand and dragged me to our class. Ah. This is so nostalgic. The idiot and I acted like three days ago never happened.

We arrived to class on time. I walked up to Seto.

"Oh. Good morning, Kido. I'm assuming you and Kano made up since you guys walked to school together?" Seto asked me.

"Yup. It's all thanks to you. Well, I better leave you alone or Mary might misunderstand something." I said with a smile. Seto's face turned red. Woah. I didn't expect that reaction. He must really like her. I laughed. Seto was still blushing, but he said, "You're turning into Kano."
He's right. Usually Kano teases everyone, mostly me. It's like his hobby.

"You're right. Okay. That idiot has been influencing me. " I said.

"Haha. I like this new you." He said with a friendly smile.

"Thanks." I awkwardly replied back.

Ding dong. Ding dong. The bell rang and our teacher arrived. He said, "Class has started. Everyone, go back to your seats."

I waved to Seto goodbye and returned to my seat.

Kano's POV

When I saw Kido go up to talk to Seto, I felt kind of uneasy. Then, I saw her smiling and laughing. That uneasy feeling disappeared right away. Kido always looks more girly whenever she blushes, smiles, or laughs. I hope she can do those things more often. I rested my chin to my hands and listened to lesson our teacher was teaching us. The bell for lunch rang. I turned around to face Kido, but I saw her walk out of the door. Of course, I followed her through the hallway and onto the school rooftop. What the hell? Why is she going here again? I opened the door and was greeted by a heavy wind. Where is she? I walked a few steps and tripped over something. I landed on something soft.

"Hmm?" My eyes widened when I looked down. I realized that I had landed on Kido's body. I backed away quickly. My back had slammed the door.

"Oh my gosh! Why would she be sleeping here?" I said to myself. I'm alone with a sleeping, defenseless Kido. She looks so peaceful when she sleeps and she's listening to music. I looked at her iPod. She was listening to the Vocaloid IA. I didn't think she would be into Vocaloid. I moved closer to her. I stretched my hand towards her green hair that was in front of her face. Then, her eyes suddenly opened and she grabbed my wrist, not even gently. How the hell did she wake up from that and not from me falling on top of her.

"Were you going to take advantage of me?" She asked with her usual cold expression. She took out one of the earphones."Hey. Keep in mind that you're the one who decided to sleep so defenselessly on the school rooftop. You should be lucky that I'm not a pervert."

"Achoo!" Kido sneezed.

"Ew..."I said bluntly. "Geez. You're going get sick if you keep sleeping here and it's windy. Shall I take you to the infirmary to sleep?" I got up, but then she grabbed my hand suddenly.

"No. Don't worry. I just want to sleep here." I looked at her face and it said, "please". How can I say no to that face? I started unbuttoning my blazer.

"Woah. Stop. What exactly are you doing?" She looked at me nervously.

"Relax. I'm not going do anything to you. Haha. You're the one having dirty thoughts now." I teased her as I stuck my tongue out and winked. Her whole face turned red. She looks more girly now. I'm so glad. It's almost like I live to see her blush. Okay, that sounded wrong.

Finally, I was done with the last button and threw my blazer right to her face. "Wear that and go to sleep, Leader. Lunch should end in around 15 minutes. " She held onto the blazer and looked at me, surprised.

"Thanks, Kano." She had put on my blazer and fell asleep ten seconds after. How does a girl fall asleep so quickly like that. Why is she so tired? A few minutes later, her head landed on shoulder. I suddenly got nervous. Oh my gosh. Should I move her head? How do I not wake her up? I don't know what to do. My heart is beating so fast. My breathing became irregular. I hope lunch ends soon. Slowly, I started falling asleep myself...

Kido's POV

My eyes slowly opened. The first thing I saw was Kano's sleeping face. It was so close to mine. It looks like we're a couple. How did we get in this position? He sneezed. Oh no. I have to return his blazer. I took it off and flicked his forehead gently. He woke up a few seconds after.

"Thanks for letting me sleep with your blazer" I said, handing it back. This idiot is always nice to me."Uh..no problem." Kano replied. "Sorry. I fell asleep. "

"That's alright." I said. I'm so glad that he's awake.

We stood up and returned to class. I sat behind him as usual and tried listening to the teacher's lesson. I couldn't pay attention that much. The bell rang and it was time to go to the clubroom.
Shintaro, Momo, Kano, Haruka, and Takene were there, too.

"Hey, Kano. When's your birthday?" Momo asked.

"Huh? Oh. May 10th." He answered.

"Today's May 9th. You birthday's tomorrow." Seto pointed out.

"Oh is it?" Kano asked, surprised. I bonked his head.

"You idiot. Don't forget important things like that!" I shouted at him.

"I never really cared about my birthday, though. You guys don't have to give me anything." He said in a monotone voice.

"Of course we have to give you something." Mary joined in the conversation.

I flicked his forehead, but I understand why he would say that. His birthday is the day his mother died. I wonder what he does every year for his birthday. Does his dad even give him a present? I highly doubt that. We left the clubroom after two hours. We only talked about Kano's birthday during those two hours.

Kano's birthday is tomorrow. Damn it. What can I give to that idiot? Argh! I'm so pissed off. There are so many thing on my mind at the moment: the club, schoolwork, and Kano. I can only think about Kano, though. I've always rude to him. A week ago, he called me nice, yet I beat him up and call him "idiot". He has no idea how much I owe him. He helped me form the club and make so many good friends. Now, I want to help him. I'm going to bring Kano and his dad closer! This will be my birthday present for you, Kano, so you better appreciate it.

We walked together as usual with the gang. Then, suddenly someone tugged at my school uniform. I turned around and saw Momo and Mary behind me.

"Do you want to go shopping with us to look for presents for Kano?" They asked. I shook my head. I said, "Sorry, but I already have an idea for a present." They looked at me sadly. I feel like I just killed their cat.

Then, I whispered into their ears, "Hey. Why don't you guys plan a surprise party for Kano at the clubroom."

"That sounds great. You can get Kano to go to the clubroom when we're ready." I honestly didn't want to, but I nodded anyways. I arrived at my house and waved goodbye to Kano and Seto. Kano still looks sad.

I did my homework in four hours. It was 9:00 PM now. I took a shower and I didn't bother drying all of my hair. I had a towel wrapped around my neck and wore my iPod hoodie that Ayano gave me.

Okay. I'm going to Kano's house. I want to talk to his father. I got there in 15 minutes

Knock knock

I was expecting to see Kano first, but it was the jackass. He really looks like Kano, though.

"Hi. I'm a classmate of Kano." I said, trying to be polite.

"Sorry. What did the bastard do this time? He's always been a troublemaker." Kano's dad said, irritated.

"Woah. Whah? He didn't do anything wrong. If anything you're the one who's doing something wrong." I said and pointed my finger accusingly at him.

"Huh?" He asked.

"To be honest, I just really want to hit you right now. Kano may be annoying, but you piss me off 50 times more than he does, you jerky jerk." Jerky jerk? Is this the best I could come up with. Isn't jerky food? Anyways..."What kind of father are you? You blamed him for your wife's death! Your wife loved him, stupid! That's why she had him. I bet you don't even get him a birthday present every year. You really are the worst!"

I was out of breath. I can't believe I defended Kano like that. "That's all I had to say. I'm leaving now."

I walked out of the house. I ended up at the park where Kano and I hung out on the first day of school. I finally realized that even though I said all that, it wouldn't really bring Kano and his dad closer.

"Damn it!" I kicked this trash can multiple times.

"Why are you abusing that trash can?" I heard a voice and laugh from behind me. I turned around

"Kano..."

He smiled and we sat on the swings. I didn't say anything.

"It's late and dangerous out here. What are you doing here? You're a girl, you know."

"Yes, Kano. I do know that I'm a girl, but even you consider me a girl." I said and laughed.

"Well yeah. Even though, you're casual clothes aren't really girly." He said while pointing to my clothes.

Then, I looked at his clothes. He was wearing blue pants and a black hoodie. The hoodie had black dots going vertically down the side of his face on the inside of his hood, and white dots on the outside.

The idiot and I were still on the swings and we stayed like that for more than an hour.

"How long were you at this park?" I asked him.

"After I finished my homework." Kano answered.

"I see." So he didn't hear what I said to his father.

"It's really late. What time is it? You have to go to sleep, since you were so sleepy today. I should take you home." Kano said. I took out my iPhone.

"It's 11:59 PM." I said.

"Only 1 more minute until my birthday." Kano said, not really excitingly.

I didn't say anything. I just sat on the swings and stared at my iPhone. I don't even have a gift for him. I should have went shopping with Momo and Mary.

12:00

"Happy Birthday, Kano." I said quietly.

"Thanks! I hope you didn't get me a present, because hanging out with you on my birthday is good enough." He said happily.

"That sounds so...cheesy." I said, but even so my face must be red.

"Well I actually did have a present for you." I started. He looked at me with a curious expression. "I talked to your dad and I was hoping that he would realize how mean he's been and be nice to you."

Kano didn't say anything. C'mon. Say something, Kano. I reall-

He suddenly grabbed my arm and pulled me towards his chest.

"Kano?" I asked, confused.

"That's the best birthday gift anyone has ever tried getting me, so thank you." Kano said and laughed.

"But I think hugging you without getting injured is a better gift." He continued. He was hugging me tightly, like he didn't want me to let go.

My heart is beating so fast. Can Kano feel it?

"KANO!" We heard someone shout. We quickly broke out of the hug and we saw his dad. How the heck did he know we were here?

"Dad?' Kano asked.

"Your friend made me realize how terrible I was towards you. I treated you like crap for the past 15 years. It's not your fault mom died. I'm so sorry, Kano." His dad confessed.

Woah. Did my plan actually work? I looked at Kano. He was really shocked. So was I. Wait this is a supposed to be a heartwarming moment and I'm right in the middle of it.

"Well. I'm just going go now. I feel like I'm in the way." I said awkwardly, while backing away.

"No. Stay here with me." Kano grabbed my arm.

"Ah. O-okay." I replied.

"Dad. It's okay now. Let's just start over." Kano said with a genuine smile. My heart's beating fast again. This smile was so different from the other times he smiled. He looks so mature and not like an idiot. I feel like the idiot now. I blushed at his smile.

"Are you okay, Kido? Do you have a fever?" He asked with concern. He put his hand on my forehead. That just made my face more red.

"I'm fine." I said.

"Dad. I'm going to take Kido home now." Kano said.

"Wait. Kido, is it? May I have a quick word with you." Kano's dad asked. I nodded.

I walked to him. "What do you want?" I asked, harshly a little.

"Thank you for everything." He said. This "jackass" isn't that bad.

"No problem."

"Do you like Kano?" He asked.

"Sure. We're friends." I replied.

"No I meant as a romantic way." He said. That's not really something you should ask to your son's friend...

I laughed. "That's ludicrous."

"You didn't say yes or no though." He pointed out.

I said goodnight to him and went to Kano. "So what did my dad say to you. " Kano asked. "Nothing." I said simply. "Eh? He obviously told you something. C'mon, Kido. Share with me." Kano asked and pouted.

"It's a secret." I smiled.

"Hey, Kano. Did you ever hate your dad even a little?" I asked as we walked in the neighborhood. "To be honest, I was never really resentful towards him. I just felt a little...lonely. I felt like there was wall between my father and me." Kano admitted. "I see." I replied as I put my hands in my pockets.

"Hey, Kido. Can I ask you something?" I heard Kano say.

"You just did..." I responded.

"Haha. Okay. Let me ask you another question then." He said back.

"I'm going to skip school today to visit my mother's grave. Can you come with me? I'm sure my mom would love to hear another person's voice besides my own." Kano asked seriously.

Why me? I wonder. Oh no. There's going to be a surprise party for Kano in the clubroom after school.

"How about we go before school?" I asked. I wasn't go to take no for an answer. Momo and Mary are working hard to plan the party and they want me to bring him to the clubroom.

"Eh? Well sure, but aren't you already sleepy, Kido?" Kano said in a serious voice still.

"No. Huuuaaaahhh." I covered my mouth.

Damn it. I just had to yawn right after saying "no". Kano looked at me funnily and chuckled. He started to pat my hair and ruin it."Hahahaha. You keep making cute faces. I can't really say no to you can I?" Kano said, still laughing. "Fine. I'll go to your house early in the morning to pick you up. You're really going to lose a lot of sleep. You know I worry about you, right?"

I looked at him thoughtfully for a moment. You also make me worry, Kano. "I'm sorry. I promise that after today, I'll go to sleep regularly from now on." "Pinkie promise?" He said, holding out his pinkie. I gave him my pinkie. We smiled at each other and had let go.

"Finally, we're at your house. Good night, Kido!" He waved with his usual grin. "Yeah. Good night, idiot." He looked surprise and before he could say anything back, I closed my door. I sat down and leaned against the door. I sighed, pulled my knees up, and buried my face in there. "Damn..."

"I'm so tired." I muttered. "I'm so sleepy. I just want to sleep and never wake up again. I see darkness, but why am I still awake? Ayano. Kano. They're so alike, aren't they? "Ayano, are you really going to keep our promise. You made me pinkie swear, Ayano. I w-want to believe that you'll keep your promise. Please, Ayano, join the music club. You're the one who made the promise. Who am I kidding, though? I remembered the day you asked me, "Who are you?" I hope I can see you soon, even if it was just a fated meaning. I was so lonely without you, until I met Kano."

Darkness. I see nothing, but darkness. I'm aware that I'm awake. Why can't I sleep? I'll just make everyone worry if I'm sleepy at school.

"Just fall asleep, Kido," my best friend said in a gentle voice.

Another flashback, eh? Ayano. It seems you're making me remember you all the time. Even now, I still can't believe you forgot about my existence because of that car accident. I remember a few weeks ago when I became friends with the gang, I told myself I couldn't forget about you, because I would forget about all those happy moments we had together. To be honest, I really want to forget about you. It hurts remembering you all the time, while you don't know a thing about me. How long has it been since we last saw each other. A year? Maybe two years? It took me a moment to realize that I was crying.

"When you're feeling sad, then smile. It'll make you feel better." I was saying the same words they told me.

I felt my lips move up and I finally drifted off to sleep.

Knock! Knock!

The banging of the door woke me up right away, since I was sleeping on the other side of the door. That was not pleasant. Why can't I wake up peacefully in the morning? "Oi, Kido! Are you still sleeping? Hello? Did you forget our plans in the morning?" I heard the idiot's voice. Unbelievable. I close my eyes for five seconds at night and it's already morning!

"Can you wait for me for five minutes?" I quickly said back. "I still need to get ready." I rushed through my hallway and went to my room. I found my school uniform, stripped my clothes off, and changed into my uniform in under a minute. I brushed my hair in a not so gentle way and ran to the kitchen to get some bread for breakfast. I don't have time to make a bento box, so I guess I'll have to buy lunch. I got my backpack and had put on my shoes.

Finally, I opened the door and saw Kano with flowers and a smile. "Good morning," He greeted. Before I greeted him back, I yawned. "Huahh. Morning, but I wouldn't say it was a good morning." We started walking."You really look tired. Should I let you rest some more? I don't understand why you wanted to go so early in the morning. We can always go after school." "No!" I exclaimed. "I mean we have to go to the clubroom after school, so..." He looked at me with suspicion and went along with my excuse, even though we actually do have to go to the clubroom.

"My dad's coming with us. When we were at home, we had a talk. He told me that you were an interesting girl." "He did now, did he?" I laughed nervously. "Yup." Kano smiled and laughed. "He also told me that you called him "jerky jerk. Is that true, because you could have called him much meaner names." "Yeah. Though in my head, I called him a jackass, but he's alright now." I answered.

Kano snickered. "That is so like you." I heard him say out.

"What's that supposed to mean?" I asked.

"You're always saying what's on your mind." He answered.

"Er. I don't know whether I should take that as an insult or a compliment." I said confused.

"Ahahaha. Just take it as a compliment, so I won't get hit by you." He joked with a grin.

"Since it's your birthday, I'll make an exception." I said.

Kano's POV

We arrived at the cemetery and walked to my mom's shrine. My dad, Kido, and I clapped hands and bowed.

Hey, Mom. It's been awhile since I visited, hasn't it. Haha. I have so much to tell you, but I'll make it short since I bought my friend with me to visit you. Her name is Tsubomi Kido and she's amazing. I didn't like her at first, but now she's a really good friend of mine. Because of her, dad and I got to bond. We actually are like a family. Mom, I realized that you have given me birthday presents even though you're not alive anymore. You gave birth to me and you gave me a name. Thanks for bringing me into this world!

I was done. If I say more, I'll probably be late for school. "Hey, Kido. You done yet?' I asked her. She opened her eyes and nodded. "Thanks for coming with me." I told her. "I didn't just go here for you, you know. I also wanted to speak to your mom. I wish we could have met her." Kido spoke. "Yeah...that makes two of us."

I took out my phone. "Crap. It's 8:20. We're going to be late if we don't go now. Bye, Dad!" I called out. I took Kido's hand and dragged her through the cemetery. "Hey. We're being disrespectful by running around here." I heard Kido say from behind me. "Would you rather be late?" I asked, not letting go and continuing to run.

"I swear." Kido started. "Every day, we're almost late to school because of you." She said out of breath, sitting on her seat. "But we made it on time just like every other day." I smiled at her. "Happy Birthday, Kano!" we heard. We turned around and saw the gang. "Hey. Thanks!" I said smiling at them. More and more people came near my desk to say "Happy Birthday." I thanked everyone of them and glanced at Kido a few times. I saw her head buried in her arms. She's really exhausted. She hasn't been sleeping much and I woke her up earlier this morning. I feel guilty for making her come with me right before school, but she kept insisting. The door had slide opened and our teacher walked in."Okay. Class, settle down. Class has begun. Go back to your seats."

I heard Kido groan and she lifted her head up. She sat on her chair in a perfect posture and listened to the teacher.

During the lesson, the teacher called on every student in alphabetical order to read a paragraph from a book. After it was my turn, I turned around to find Kido, half asleep. I kicked her chair. How nice of me...She became fully awake and stood up right away. She took a guess in which paragraph she had to read. It was a good guess, because she guessed right and didn't get in trouble. She sat back down and whispered, "Thanks." I just smiled back at her. No problem.

The bell for lunch rang. I saw Kido get up. "Hey, Kido. Where are you going?" Momo asked. "Cafeteria. I didn't make my lunch this morning, so I'm going to buy some food." She replied back tiredly. Before I said I would go with her, Momo said, "You can have some of Mary's and my bento boxes." Mary nodded and held out her bento box. "Oh. You guys don't have to." Kido said. "It's okay. Let's go eat at the school rooftop now. No boys can come with us, though." Momo said. She was staring at me specifically. Did I do something wrong. "How come we, guys, can't eat lunch with you, girls." Shintaro asked.

"We hang out with you guys every day. We need to have some girl time." Momo said and stuck her tongue out. "We do?" Kido asked, confuzzled. "Yes, Kido. Yes, we do. " Momo looked at her intensely.

"Ah. I see. Okay. We'll see you guys later." Kido said. Seto, Shintaro, and I watched the three girls walk out of the classroom.

"I wonder what that was all about." Seto said.

Shintaro sighed."Man. Girls can be so weird. And by that, I only mean Momo."

We all laughed and ate our lunches at our desks without the girls. "So birthday boy, do you have any special plans for today? Shintaro asked. "Not really. I think I'm just going to hang out at the clubroom." I replied back. "

"Hey, Kano. What do you think of Kido?" They asked me. Why would they ask me that? It took me a moment to find an answer."She's fun to tease, but she can be so violent. She has her girly moments and always makes me smile." I said. I was thinking of those fun times I had with Kido and laughed to myself. Seto and Shintaro looked at each other. "You sound like you like her, dude." Shintaro told me. I rested my head in my hands, thinking to myself. I still don't know much about Kido. I told her stuff about me, but I haven't heard anything from her. I was afraid if I push her into telling me, then we would fight just like before. But even so, Kido is precious to me, like Ayano. She cheered me up that day. She helped my dad and I be happier in just one night. Kido is different from the other girls. She's aggressive and antisocial, but she's also very kind and smart. I never get bored when I'm around her. Every time, we hold hands and hug, I don't feel lonely. Seto and Shintaro looked at me curiously.

"I think I do kind of like her."

Woah. Kano is beginning to realize his feelings for Kido! The surprise birthday party for Kano will be in the next chapter. I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. Thank for reading this chapter. Thanks for being patient, too! It's almost been a month since I updated. I had writer's block ahaha and projects to work on. Fortunately, I had a week off from school and got to work on this chapter. Please review to tell me what you think. I don't really know many of your guys' opinions on my story. Don't leave me hanging haha. c: Okay. I'm done. Bye!