The next morning Chitoge awoke with a stretch, looking over at her friend. Normally Raku would have been sleeping the next bed but, since Tsugumi believed she was sick Tsugumi had insisted that he take the couch so she could be close to Chitoge. She continued to watch her friend sleep for just a moment longer before deciding it was time to get out of bed, as she pulled back the covers she dropped her feet softly to the floor as to not wake up Tsugumi.

She walked over to the mirror and began to brush her hair after having gotten dressed. After she finished with that she walked into the bathroom to brush her teeth. As she looked at herself in the mirror, memories of last night began to dance in her head and she began to feel tears well up in her eyes. She quickly wiped them away, wiping her hands on the towel next to her. Why do I feel this way about them kissing? It's not like I love him, we're just doing this to keep our families from fighting.

After a few minutes she left the bathroom and walked into the main room. As she entered she saw Raku sitting up on the couch with a book in his lap, which he looked up from as she entered.

"Good morning Chitoge."

"Good morning. Did you sleep well?"

Raku stretched his arms with a yawn "I slept pretty well. You look like you slept pretty well."

Chitoge sat down next to him "Yeah, for the most part."

"How are you feeling this morning?"

"I'm feeling better than I was yesterday, still not the best though. I went looking for you and Tsugumi last night but I couldn't find you, what happened with you two?"

Raku's cheeks began to turn a light red "We took a walk along the beach to clear our heads, we ended up getting a nice view of the fireworks as well."

"Oh, I see. Those fireworks sure were pretty this year weren't they?"

"Yeah, I totally agree. They were the best I've seen in a few years."

The two of them continued to talk for a few minutes before Tsugumi walked into the main room to join them. She sat down across the table from Chitoge and began talking with them as they waited for the others to contact them. Time seemed to crawl for Chitoge as the three of them continued to talk before a knock sounded on the door. Koaski opened the door greeting them all with a warm smile.

"Good morning everyone. It's time for us to get going."

The three of them climbed to their feet and collected their things before exiting the room and followed Kosaki down the hall. As they walked down towards the lobby Kosaki slowed down to walk beside Chitoge.

"How are you feeling today?"

"I'm feeling better but it still hurts"

"I can't begin to imagine what you're feeling" Kosaki said looking sullenly at the ground.

Chitoge nudged her shoulder "I'll be alright though, so try not worry about me too much okay?"

Once the group reached the lobby they were greeted by Shu and Rori. After checking to see if everyone was ready to go the group set off towards the train station. Once the group arrived home they went their separate ways. Tsugumi and Raku returned home after a while and ate supper before going to their rooms. Tsugumi began unpacking her things as her phone rang, she looked down at it seeing that it was Claude on the ID.

"Hello"

"Hello Tsugumi, it's been a few weeks since your last report. How is the mission proceeding?"

"The mission is proceeding as planned."

"Very good, I would expect nothing less of you. Do you have anything that would prove that Raku and Chitoge's relationship is a sham"

"Uh, not at this moment but i'm working on it"

"Alright, report to me when you find something."

"Will do sir."

After she hung up Tsugumi collapsed onto her bed and stared up at the ceiling her face a brilliant red. How am I gonna tell him that I've fallen in love with Raku. If he finds out that he and I are dating then everything will fall apart. Tsugumi's eyes went wide as she nearly jumped out of her skin hearing a knock at her door.

"W-who is it!?"

Raku appeared as he opened the door "it's me, I was just coming to see if you needed any help unpacking things."

She let out a soft sigh "you nearly gave me a heart attack there, and no I don't need your help i'm almost done"

Raku laughed, a smile slowly growing across his face "sorry, I didn't mean to scare you. Who were you talking to just now?"

"I was just calling Chitoge to see how she was doing."

"Oh, how was she?"

"She said she was doing fine. Did she seem weird to you after the fireworks?"

"Not really, she seemed like she was doing fine the next morning."

"Hm, anyway I gotta finish unpacking I'll see you in the morning."

"Alright, i'll let you get to it then see ya tomorrow."

After Raku left Tsugumi finished putting her clothes and other things away before settling down onto bed once again. Thoughts began to run through her mind, thoughts of Chitoge, Raku and Claude. Her eyes closed slowly as she fell into the peaceful oblivion of sleep. She arose the next morning with a stretch, she climbed out of bed lazily before starting her daily routine. After she and Raku had breakfast they began heading to school. They idly chatted as they continued to walk.

Once they reached the school they went to their lockers, putting their shoes away and grabbing their books before joining back up to head to class. After a few minutes they reached their classroom, looking around they didn't see most of their friends which was normal since they usually arrived early. But today Chitoge was already in her seat. As they walked over to her, Chitoge looked over at them with a smile.

"Hey you two, why are you here so early?"

Tsugumi spoke up first. "I was gonna ask you the same thing, we usually meet up with you on the way to school but you weren't there today. You had me a little worried.

"You don't need to worry about me, I'm fine. I just wasn't sleeping well and I woke up early so instead of sitting around the house I figured I'd get to school a bit early today."

"You know I can't help but worry about you, you're my best friend after all. I wish you would have text me or something to let me know."

"You're right, I'm sorry Tsugumi I'll try to let you know next time I leave for school early."

Tsugumi gave her a slight nod "Thank you."

Raku and Tsugumi went to their seats, setting their bags down on the floor beside their chairs as the other students began filing into the room slowly. Once everyone was in the room students split into their usual groups and began chatting until class began.

After the teacher dismissed their class the students packed up for the day, once most of them had left Raku and the rest of their group gathered around Chitoge's desk.

Shu looked around at everyone. "What should we do today?"

Ruri was the next to speak up. "We do have a test tomorrow so it would probably be smart if we studied for it."

"Aww, why do you have to be so boring? Why can't we do something fun."

"Because your idea of fun is hitting on girls you think are cute. Now come on, we need study." Ruri grabbed Shu by the arm and began to drag him towards the classroom door.

"We'll see you guys over at the usual place!" With that, the classroom door closed leaving the rest of them alone.

After a short moment, Kosaki broke the silence. "I guess we should get going then huh?" The others nodded in agreement except Chitoge who lowered her gaze to her desk.

"I don't think I'll be going this time guys."

Tsugumi gave her a concerned look "Why not? Are you not feeling well again?"

Chitoge gave her a small smile "no, it's nothing like that. I just have something else to do today."

"Is it something we can help you with? I'm sure we could get it done quickly if we helped you."

"No, It's something I need to do on my own."

"Alright, well, if you end up needing help just give us a call we'll be over as soon as we can."

Chitoge got up from her seat "Thanks for the offer, I'll see you guys tomorrow." The sound of her footsteps began to fade as she made her way down the hall to the exit. Shortly after her departure the other gathered their things and left for the meeting place where Shu and Ruri were already waiting.

After their study session Kosaki began walking toward her home. Maybe I should go check up on Chitoge, it's not like her to miss a study session but maybe she did have something she needed to do. Kosaki changed direction with a determined look on her face and made her way to Chitoge's home. She gulped softly and knocked on the door quietly. She jumped slightly when a rough looking man opened the door.

"Who are you? What are you here for?"

"U-Um, i'm looking for Chitoge."

"What business do you have with her?"

"She didn't make it to our groups study session so I just wanted to check up on her and bring her the notes from today."

The man grunted and stepped aside for her to come in, Kosaki slipped off her shoes at the entrance before following the man through the halls.

He knocked on the door softly. "Miss, you have a friend here to see you."

The door opened slightly to let Chitoge peek out before she fully opened the door. "Oh, Kosaki it's you. Come in, please."

Kosaki stepped through the door with Chitoge closing it shortly after she entered. She fumbled around in her bag before pulling out a few sheets of paper. "I figured since you couldn't make it to the study session I would bring a few notes that we all took."

Chitoge took them from her, setting them down on her table. "Thanks, that was very considerate of you."

Kosaki put her arms behind her back as she shuffled her feet quietly. "I think this is the first time I've been in your room."

"There's not really much to see."

Kosaki walked over to a bookshelf standing alone in a corner, her eyes ran over all the items before landing a monkey that Raku had gotten Chitoge for her birthday. "You kept this?"

Chitoge looked over at her. "Mhmm. I just couldn't bring myself to get rid of it. Because even though it's just a stupid monkey it was a sweet gesture from him."

Kosaki gave her a brief nod. "That's understandable. Chitoge c-can I ask you something?"

"Of course you can."

Kosaki shifted her weight from one foot to the other, casting glances at Chitoge with the occasional sigh.

Chitoge let out a soft sigh "Is there something you're wanting to say?"

Kosaki raised her hands up in front of her "N-n-no. Of course not." Her gaze turned away from Chitoge.

Chitoge turned her gaze to Kosaki, her eyes seeming to bore into Kosaki. "Come on Kosaki, you and me have been friends for a while now. You can ask me anything."

"Why didn't you come to the study session this afternoon?"

"Oh."

"They told us about how you were to the first one to show up at school and now this, you can't start distancing yourself from your friends. In the end you'll not only end up hurting yourself but all of your friends too."

Tears began to well up in Chitoge's eyes. "I know I know, it just hurts seeing them together. Just as I began to understand my feelings for Raku he's ripped away from me by my closest friend. I want to be happy for them but I just can't. I don't know what to do."

Kosaki walked over to Chitoge, wrapping her arms around her in a gentle embrace. "I don't know what you're going through, I wish I did so that I could help you. I think you need to talk to Tsugumi about this. If you keep these feelings pent up, it won't end well."

"I know, I just don't know what to say. If I told her how I felt about Raku she would probably step away but I know she would just feel like I am now and that's not what I want. But you're right I have to talk to her about it. Thank you, being here for me and helping me through this."

"You're welcome. That's what friends are for, right?"

"You're absolutely right, if only I were a good a friend as you are."

"You shouldn't doubt yourself like that, you're a great friend. You and Tsugumi will work this out."

The two of them continued to talk for a while, Kosaki looked over at the clock on Chitoge's desk. "I didn't realize it was that late!, I gotta get home my mom is probably wondering where I'm at."

Kosaki quickly hopped up and gathered up her things and headed for the door. With a quick goodbye she exited the room and headed for home.

Chitoge smiled as she watched her friend leave and laid back on her bed. How am I gonna tell Tsugumi about this. I want her to be happy but I can't deny the feelings that I've found for Raku. I wonder what tomorrow will bring. Her eyes slowly closed as she lay thinking and soon she found herself slipping into peaceful dreams.

Author's note: For those of you still reading this after the long wait, I sincerely thank you for being so patient with me. Honestly I started out strong while writing this story but after a while it started getting harder to write and eventually I lost the passion for it. But I never forgot about it, I kept thinking to myself that I need to finish this story. So I hope you're all enjoying it and that you keep reading.