"Is that what you'll be wearing?" Iris asked as she glared at Klaus's outfit. It was the day of the Fireworks Festival, one of Iris's favorite festivals of the year, and they were getting ready to attend.

Klaus looked at himself in the mirror, "What's wrong with it?" He was wearing his usual attire, just the way he liked it. "It's what I always wear."

Iris gave an exasperated sigh, "Exactly! It's what you always wear!" Klaus looked at her, he wasn't sure he was following her. Iris saw the incredulity in Klaus's face and rolled her eyes, "It's a festival, Klaus. You need to wear something more exciting!"

Klaus scoffed at her remark, "Says the one who is wearing the same thing she wears every day." Klaus didn't even bother to check Iris's reaction, he knew her too well, she was pouting. He ran his hand through his hair, he looked presentable.

"That's because this is my favorite outfit." Iris twirled around, something Klaus was always impressed she could manage in that dress of hers. "You, on the other hand, need something more…" Iris chose her words carefully, "appealing." Klaus saw her reflection smirk at him. Oh no, that was not just any smirk. That was the smirk she often used with her 'dolls'.

Klaus turned to look at her, "Iris, no." No, there was no fear in his voice, definitely not. Iris just stood there, smiling sweetly at him. "No." Klaus repeated, trying to sound more commanding, but his voice came out as weak.

"Come oooooon," Iris dragged her vowels like she always did when she wanted something. "You're going to have fuuuuuuuuun." Klaus could be naïve, even dense at times, but he knew he wasn't going to have fun. Klaus knew that if he let himself be dragged into this, he would never come out. In Iris's eyes once you became a doll, you could not go back. It was like a weird, weird mafia.

"No, Iris, no." Klaus backed up slowly, Iris mirroring his every movement. His back bumped into the mirror, he had no escape. This was it, Klaus was about to lose his status as human being and turned into one of Iris's playthings. He would not be converted into a doll without a fight, "Iris, you do not even have time to coordinate a whole outfit." Klaus tried to reason with her.

Iris pulled a hanger with a full outfit from nowhere and smiled at Klaus, "I already have…" She tilted her head, "You just have to put it on!" Oh, she had come prepared. Klaus should've seen this coming. There was no way he could reason with Iris now; she knew she had won.

Klaus gave a defeated sigh and took the hanger, "This better be good…" He examined the outfit. It was a short sleeved shirt with- Wait, short sleeved? He glared at Iris, "What are you playing at?" His voice harsher than he'd intended to, "You know I cannot wear short sleeves." Iris didn't even flinch at his glare.

"You can wear them; you just refuse to." Klaus shot her a skeptic look, so now she wanted to use logic and proper word usage? "Here," Iris pulled out a blazer and handed it to Klaus. He briefly pondered about where Iris was pulling all these clothes from when Iris spoke again, "I didn't forget…"

"I know..." Klaus's eyes warmed, of course she didn't, she would never. "I will get changed, then."

The outfit Iris had picked out for him was nice, it was a good combination of colors and styles. It would have looked great on someone younger, but not on him. Perhaps on Raeger it would look stylish, but on him it just looked like he was trying too hard. "I do not think I like this…" he said, looking at himself in the mirror and trying not to cringe.

"Nonsense! You look wonderful." Iris exclaimed. She said that to all her dolls, so Klaus didn't think too much about the compliment. "Come on, we don't have much time." Iris said impatiently. She always got giddy and a bit insufferable before her favorite festivals.

"Iris, relax. We have plenty of time." Klaus was still looking at the mirror as he said that. He was still trying to accommodate the outfit into something NOT terrible.

Iris made and exasperated noise, "You're going to take forever!" She dramatically threw her arms into the air, "I'm going to go get Mistel," she headed for the door, but she suddenly turned around to look at him, "Five minutes. No more" Were her final words.

Klaus didn't even bother to look at her as she left. She had said five minutes…He would take six, just to spite her. While Klaus fretted over the mirror, a thought entered his mind. What would Haruka think? Before, he would have bet his life that Haruka would've seen the same thing he did, an old man trying too hard. But these past days had taught him that Haruka was extremely unpredictable. Maybe she wouldn't see the old man in the mirror, perhaps she would even like his outfit. Maybe, just maybe, she would see a handsome-

Klaus's thoughts froze. Handsome? Why would Haruka even think that? Klaus was fantasizing too much. Haruka's tolerance of him had given his imagination fuel and his feelings false hope. He couldn't fool himself any longer, could he? That longing he'd felt since his birthday celebration. That desire that sparked the time she had come into his house because she had 'wanted to see his face'. Those feelings were not mere friendship. His feelings had evolved into something more, something indecent, a crush.

Klaus held onto the mirror. No, he couldn't do that. His time for love was long past. He'd had his chance and he'd wasted it. He couldn't just barge into Haruka's life and claim her future for himself. No, he had to put a stop to all this.

Klaus squared himself. He had decided, he would control his feelings and put distance between Haruka and himself, it was only fair. Klaus took a steadying breath and got out of the house, he had taken more than five minutes and he didn't want Iris to murder him.

Klaus was just closing his door when he heard Mistel speak, "So you got to play with two dolls for the festival, huh?"

Iris giggled, "Oh yes! It was so much fun, they were the most perfect canvases!" Klaus felt sorry for the other poor person who had received the same doll treatment he had.

"Stop that, sister. You're freaking me out." Mistel crossed his arms in mild exasperation. "I still think you went a bit overboard with Haruka…" Mistel trailed off.

Wait, did he just say Haruka? The two dolls Mistel had referred to were Haruka and him?

"Iris…" Klaus spoke. The moment Iris heard his voice she jumped a little.

She looked at him, her eyes a mixture of nervousness, worry and the fear children have when they're caught in the act. "Oh, hey Klaus, you're early!" Klaus narrowed his eyes, he was definitely not early, and her voice was definitely an octave higher.

"What did Mistel mean with 'Haruka'?" he asked, trying to keep his voice as even as possible, given Mistel's expression he was failing miserably.

"Ah, he didn't m-mean anything by it-" Iris stammered.

"Do not lie to him." Mistel told Iris, perhaps he was on Klaus's side, or perhaps he was just tired of Iris bringing girls into their home and playing dress up with them. Iris shot him a glare that Mistel easily shrugged off, "Go on, tell him what you did."

Iris sighed in defeat, "Okay…" she took a deep breath and explained herself, "Haruka came by this morning for me to dress her-"

"What she means is 'I went very early in the morning to her farm to drag her here against her will.''" Mistel explained, which earned him another dirty look from his sister.

"It was NOT against her will!" Iris added, exasperated.

"I heard her screams, that was totally against her will."

So Iris had dragged Haruka from the comfort of her home to the torture room that was Iris's closet. Haruka had received the same treatment he had, perhaps even worse, he knew girls had it tougher when it came to dressing up.

"Iris you have to stop this." Klaus's voice was serious, he wanted Iris to know he meant business. "You cannot do things that Haruka does not wish to."

"But she was enjoying herself! She liked the dress I gave her and it's even the same-" Iris shut her mouth as quickly as the words had left it, her eyes wide.

"Same? Same what?" Klaus asked. He didn't need the answer to his question, he already knew. Klaus already knew Iris had put Haruka and him in matching outfits. That was something only Iris would do, something Klaus had specifically asked her not to do.

Iris panicked, her plan had been discovered in the worse way possible. She wasn't sure she could save the situation and prevent Klaus from changing clothes, but she would try, "I mean, it's not the same per se, but-"

"I am not going." Klaus abruptly interrupted her. It took a few seconds for Iris to register what Klaus had said.

"You're what?" she asked, praying she had heard wrong.

"I am not going to the festival," he repeated, earning a look of disbelief from Iris. "I refuse to feed your delusions."

"You can't do that!" Iris exclaimed, losing her cool. Iris had never expected him to just skip the festival, she had prepared for Klaus to want to change, but not this. The situation had blown in her face and she wasn't sure what to do.

"Yes I can, and I will." Klaus's voice was filled with finality, but Iris was not about to have that.

"No, I-"

"Sister," Mistel interrupted her, "let him be." Mistel's words were accompanied by a light tug on Iris's arm.

"But-" Iris tried to make her case.

"He is a grown man," Mistel interrupted her once again, his voice more serious. "He can make his own mistakes." Klaus looked at Mistel who gave him a superior look. Ah, so he wasn't exactly on his side. Mistel was trying to use reverse psychology, Klaus knew that, and he wasn't about to fall for that trick. "Let's go." Mistel tried to drag Iris away. Iris gave Klaus a lingering glare until she finally decided to follow her brother, stomping all the way.

Klaus sighed, he was alone. He entered his house, he didn't want to see the other residents when they got out of their houses to go to the festival. That would only result in awkward situations and uncomfortable questions. So he waited, he waited until Marian and Jonas and his family were out of range to go out again.

Klaus surveyed his surroundings. What could he do? He had never skipped a festival before. He felt disappointed because he enjoyed the yearly fireworks display, but he also felt…mischievous. He felt like a child skipping school for the first time. It was a rare mixture of excitement and anticipation. The only downside was that he had nothing to do. He briefly contemplated going back inside and working, but that would be like doing homework while skipping school, so that option was out. He finally decided to go for a walk in the woods. He waited a few more minutes, in case anyone was running late, and set off.

His walk was a peaceful one. He followed the trail that led into the mountain, he would go to the little meadow he loved, and if he was feeling adventurous he would even go to the nearby fields and see what kind of crops the farmers were growing.

Walking had always given Klaus time to think. He often thought about different fragrances he would mix, but today, he was thinking about his argument with Iris. Now that he'd had time to calm down he could see he'd been in the wrong. Sure, Iris was at fault too, but he had overreacted. He could not tell Iris what to do with her life, and he had not specifically told Iris to not dress Haruka up. He would apologize to her when he got home.

Klaus wandered into the meadow, his thoughts now drifting into Haruka. How was she dressed? What would she feel when she saw Klaus was not there? Klaus dismissed those thoughts, there was no way Haruka would be thinking about him while surrounded by all her friends. Ah, the path he had chosen was a lonely one, if he could only-

"Ah!" Klaus let out as he fell to the ground. He landed on his hands and knees, which, he would not admit, hurt quite a bit.

"I'm so sorry! I didn't see you there. I… Klaus?" a familiar voice asked. Klaus looked up from the ground, it couldn't be. Haruka was sitting behind a bush, one of her legs was sticking out and Klaus assumed it had been what he had tripped over. The sun had set a while ago, so her face was illuminated by the faint moonlight. Klaus didn't know if his feelings had skewed his perception, but Haruka looked very pretty, beautiful even. "Klaus? Did you hit your head?"

Klaus looked at her, it couldn't be. He was hallucinating, right? His feelings were so screwed up that they had tricked his mind into creating this impossible situation. While Klaus was struggling to separate fantasy from reality, Haruka was still looking at him. She was honestly wondering if he had suffered from some sort of head trauma or something. She cleared her throat in an attempt to gain Klaus's attention.

The noise brought Klaus back from his thoughts. His little fantasy felt extremely real. He hadn't noticed, but while he had been enjoying Haruka's company, his mind had captured every little detail that made Haruka…. well, Haruka. The exact same blue shade of her eyes, the delicate curve of her round cheeks. Heck, his mind even got right the slight furrow between her brows she does when she is confused.

"Klaus, you're scaring me." Haruka's replica spoke again with no real fear in her voice. Funny, even her voice was the same. A thought entered his mind…What if this was the real Haruka? Of course, it was impossible, but what if…? Klaus extended his hand to touch her cheek. His hand met soft skin, oh. "Yes, still flesh." Haruka joked.

Klaus jerked back his hand and his cheeks changed color so fast that Haruka would've been worried if the darkness had not camouflaged it. "I am deeply sorry," he said getting on his feet and trying to cover his flushed face with his hand.

"No worries, no worries. I'm just glad you're okay." Haruka smiled at him from her spot on the ground. "What are you doing here?"

Klaus sighed, that was supposed to be his line. He had gone out of his way to avoid Haruka, he had even waited for the festival to start to avoid running into her in the woods. And out of nowhere here she was, sitting on the floor like she was meant to be here. Not only had his plan failed, but he had also tripped over her, it was like the universe hated him.

Haruka was still sitting on the ground waiting for his response, so he extended his hand to help Haruka get up, "I could be asking you the same thing." Haruka did not take his hand, instead she patted the spot next to her. "No, the woods are dangerous at night."

Haruka rolled her eyes, "And what are you gonna do about that?" she asked, her voice dripping with sarcasm.

Klaus was not fazed; she always took that attitude when he offered to walk her home. He always won. "I am taking you back home."

"But I wanna see the firewooooooorks." Haruka whined. Klaus was sure Haruka had been spending too much time with Iris, the dragging of vowels a clear sign.

"Then why are you not at the festival?" asked Klaus, not only because it was the comeback that made the most sense, but also because he was truly curious as to how Haruka had ended up in the same place he was.

"Well I was going," she said in a tone that implied it was the most obvious thing in the world. "I mean, I even dressed up nicely and all…" she pouted while playing with the hem of her dress. Klaus had been too busy deciding if Haruka was real or not that he had not noticed her outfit.

He internally groaned, they matched. Haruka was wearing a sleeveless dress of the same color his shirt was, and…a single…shoe? Okay, Klaus would be the first to admit that he didn't really keep up with fashion trends, but a single shoe for a night out? That felt a little extreme.

"Where is your other shoe?" he asked, trying to keep a straight face.

Haruka frowned, "Ah, it…may be a little…broken…" she took the shoe from behind her back and showed it to Klaus. The shoe's heel was not attached to the shoe, but was instead on the palm of Haruka's hand. "Let's just say that heels are not meant to be run in…" Ah, that was such a Haruka thing to do.

"Why did you not just return home and change shoes?" Klaus was trying his hardest not to burst out laughing.

"Ah well, you see, the shoe was mad I broke it," she explained with grand gestures, amusing Klaus even further, "so it kind of took my ankle with it…" as soon as she finished she braced herself for Klaus's reaction. Haruka knew Klaus took her health very seriously, perhaps even more than her.

Klaus dropped to his knees and took Haruka's ankle into his hands. "Are you okay? Does it hurt? Tell me where it hurts." He started probing her ankle in various spots, watching her face closely for a response.

Haruka laughed, "I'm okay, it's just a light sprain." She assured him, "But I would love to see the return of Doctor Klaus." Klaus chuckled, if Haruka was making jokes, the injury couldn't be that bad. He probed until he was sure that it was nothing major and lowered Haruka's leg. "So what's the diagnosis?" She playfully asked.

"Well…" Klaus made a dramatic pause, "You are not going to lose your leg." He said in the most professional voice he could muster.

"Praise the Harvest Goddess!" Haruka threw her arms into the air and both of them burst out laughing. They laughed so hard that tears were forming in Haruka's eyes and Klaus had to clutch his stomach. They finally calmed down after a while, their laughter fading into the night. Haruka patted the spot next to her again and this time Klaus complied. They sat in silence for a few moments, both of them relishing on the beauty the night brought to the forest. "So…" Haruka started, "Why are you here?"

Ah, of course she wanted to know the reason he was here instead of enjoying the festival with the rest of the residents. Klaus didn't know how to answer her question. He couldn't blatantly tell her his reason for not going, but he didn't want to lie to her. What could you do when neither truth nor lie were the answer? "I…" Klaus searched for the right words, and Haruka looked at him expectantly. "I did not feel comfortable with going." That wasn't the truth, but it wasn't a lie either, perfect.

"Why?" Haruka asked. Oh no, he had not been ready for a follow up question. "Are you alright?" Klaus stayed silent, he needed to change the subject, he knew if Haruka pressed further he wouldn't deny her the knowledge, no matter how embarrassing it was. After a minute of complete silence something hit Haruka, realization. "Oh, it's okay if you don't want to tell me. I understand."

"Oh no, it is just…" Klaus was in a dilemma. He didn't want Haruka to know about his feelings, about how he needed to put distance between them to protect her from the big bad wolf. On the other hand, he also didn't want to put distance between them? He wanted Haruka to feel, no, to know that he trusted her, and earn her trust in return. Why did life have to be so complicated? And why, just why did he have to be filled with contradictions? He looked at her, she was staring attentively at him, and he knew he would always lose to those eyes. "I had a fight with Iris." He blurted out.

Haruka eyes widened, "What? Why?" She put her hands over her mouth, "No, wait. I'm sorry, you don't have to answer that." Klaus chuckled, she could be so cute. He chose to stay quiet this time, only the Harvest Goddess knows what he would blurt out next if he continued. "I'm glad you changed first," she whispered. The night was quiet so Klaus was able to catch her words.

"What do you mean?" he asked.

Haruka blushed, "I mean…It's not like I'm glad you two fought." She tried to explain herself, growing redder by the minute. "But, you know…You look good."

Klaus's eyes widened, all his fantasies were coming true! Sure, his fantasy Haruka had said 'handsome', but 'good' was enough, great, even. He would take 'good' anytime. "Ah, thank you…" he said, pretending his cheeks had not gone warm. "You do not look good," he expected a frown, and that's exactly what Haruka gave him. She opened her mouth to answer back, probably something snarky, but he was faster. "You look beautiful." He liked making Haruka smile, laugh and blush, but he liked it even more when she was left speechless because of him. Why? Because it meant that he had done something even quick witted Haruka could not answer.

She had never been called beautiful before. Okay, that was not entirely true. Her mother and father, heck, even her brother had called her beautiful plenty of times, but they were family, and they didn't count. More accurately, she had never been called beautiful by someone outside of her family. Vocabulary in the city was limited to 'cute' and 'hot'. Apparently she didn't meet the city's standards for 'hot' so she was always called 'cute'. It was nice to be called something else for a change.

Even under the moonlight her blush was obvious. Haruka made an effort to cover her face, "How can you say such embarrassing things out loud." Her voice muffled by her hands, but the message reached Klaus nonetheless.

Klaus laughed, "It does not matter if it is embarrassing or not," Haruka had to uncover her face to look at him, "what matters is that it is the truth." He said, making Haruka's blush deepen. Klaus had experience with the ladies, it was not something he denied, but it had been years since he had been so smooth.

"You're crazy…" Haruka covered her face and her voice became muffled once again.

Klaus's next words were 'Crazy about you', but before they could leave his mouth he stopped them. What? Had he really just been seconds away from saying that? What was wrong with him? Just minutes ago he had been swearing to himself that he would create distance between them, and now he had to make a conscious effort to stop himself from flirting with Haruka! He could not trust himself anymore. For a moment he was afraid that he would not be strong enough to protect Haruka from himself.

Haruka's voice interrupted his convoluted thoughts, "Ah, it's starting!" Haruka pointed at the sky where, sure enough, the first fireworks were making their way into the sky. Klaus watched the fireworks explode into different colors and light up the night. He turned to look at Haruka. She was watching the show with awe, her mouth slightly agape and her eyes following each and every one of the colors in the sky. Her expression almost mimicked childlike wonder. Klaus wished he could stop time and stay frozen in this moment forever. Just Haruka and him, watching fireworks with no worries nor complicated feelings.

The fireworks display went on a little longer than last year's. When the last firework had exploded, and the sky had become dark once again, Haruka sighed, "Wasn't that wonderful?" she asked Klaus, her eyes bright despite the darkness.

Klaus smiled, "Yes, I enjoyed it quite a lot." He would not tell Haruka that for the majority of the display he had been watching herinstead of the sky. "It is getting late...you should go back…" he trailed off. He fought the urge to say 'Let us go', the first step to creating distance was to stop walking her home every time.

"Okay" Haruka chirped, standing up. She took small steps, her shoes in her hand. When she felt Klaus wasn't following her, she stopped. She turned to look at him and was confused when she saw him rooted to the floor. "Let's go…?" she asked with a tentative air. Had Klaus not heard her before?

"Ah, you can go on ahead. I will head back shortly." Every part of him was screaming 'walk her home', 'it's not safe', but he fought every single one of the voices. He could do this, no, he had to do this.

"Are you not walking me home?" Haruka suddenly asked. Wow, Klaus had expected her to reference it, but not to bluntly ask him. Haruka was surprised as well. The words had left her mouth before she could stop them. She hadn't wanted to be so direct, but the prospect of Klaus not walking her home bothered her, and she at least wanted to know the reason why.

"I…I have urgent matters to tend to…" Klaus lied, he had absolutely nothing to do and nowhere to be. Klaus knew Haruka would not fall for it, she was too smart to believe his blatant lie. He just hoped that Haruka would take the hint and drop the subject.

Haruka frowned, Klaus was lying to her and she didn't know why. Had she done something wrong? Had she weirded him out with how much she loved fireworks? Her worry was quickly replaced by annoyance, what urgent matters did he have to do? What was so urgent that he had to leave her side? Whatever it was, it could wait. "My ankle hurts," she stated, looking Klaus dead in the eye. Klaus was surprised, he expected reproach, anger, maybe even sadness, not 'my ankle hurts'.

"I-" Klaus tried to respond, but Haruka cut him off.

"Carry me." Klaus was stunned, her words had not sounded like a request, they sounded like an order, which, in hindsight, was exactly what they were.

They stood in silence for a few seconds before Klaus spoke, "Why?" was all he could manage. His willpower was getting weaker by the second, he would not last a showdown.

Haruka smirked, "It hurts reeeeeeally bad" Ah, she dragged her vowels, she smelled victory. There was no way Klaus would win this, was there?

Klaus sighed in defeat, if that was what she wanted, then so be it. "Okay then," he said, and Haruka's face lit up with a smile. He walked towards her while Haruka extended her arms. Haruka motioned him to turn around and lower himself. Did she think she was getting a piggyback ride? Ha, no way. Klaus swept her off her feet and carried her bridal style. If she wanted to play dirty, then so would he.

Klaus carried Haruka through the woods, he would love to see Haruka's blushing face, but she had long hidden her face in his neck. "This is so embarrassing" Haruka said after a while, her warm breath slightly tickled Klaus.

"Ah, well, it is a small sacrifice to make in the name of your ankle, is it not?" Klaus joked. Deep down he was glad Haruka had pressured him. Even though he was mad at himself for accepting, he was glad to know that Haruka had wanted this too. It made him feel less guilty.

"Thank you…" Haruka whispered into Klaus's neck.

A small smile escaped Klaus, "For what?" he asked, trying his hardest to keep the amusement out of his voice. Klaus could hear Haruka's voice, but she was pressed so hard against his neck that he didn't understand what she'd said. "I am sorry; I did not catch that" he said into Haruka's hair. When had he nestled his face into her hair?

"For spoiling me…" Haruka repeated and Klaus let out a chuckle.

"It is my pleasure," Klaus answered truthfully. He loved the fact that Haruka thought she was the one being spoiled and not the other way around.

The rest of the short journey was spent in silence. They arrived at her farmland, but Klaus did not stop until they had reached her house. Klaus put her down gently, so gently in fact, that Haruka imagined herself with one of the 'handle with care' stickers that she often saw placed on luggage.

"Thank you," Haruka said when her feet touched the ground. She had never imagined Klaus would be able to carry her princess style all the way to her farm, he didn't come off as the athletic type.

"It was nothing," he said, looking, not at Haruka, but behind her. He seemed to be struggling with something inside his mind. Haruka did not interrupt his thoughts, instead she waited for him to finish. A few seconds passed, but the conflict inside Klaus's mind did not seem to be coming to a close.

When she could bear the silence no longer she spoke, "Is something-" she tried to ask, but was immediately silenced by Klaus bending down and pressing a soft peck on her cheek.

Klaus straighten himself, "Goodnight then," with those last words he walked into the night, disappearing from Haruka's sight and leaving her with a swirl of emotions inside.

Haruka didn't know how long she stood there after Klaus left, neither did she remember opening up her door and stepping inside, but she was inside her house, so she must have done it. She threw herself on the bed, what had just happened? Did Klaus really just kiss her? Sure, it had been a peck on the cheek, a soft brush on her skin that had lasted seconds, but a kiss is a kiss. Just the thought of it was enough to make her blush.

Her heart was beating incredibly fast and her stomach had tons of imaginary butterflies in it…Ah, she liked him, didn't she? Realization hit her like a brick. She liked Klaus, and not in a friend kind of way. She liked Klaus in a 'hold hands with me and never look at another woman again' kind of way.

Haruka's mind was racing, everything made sense now. Her constant cravings for Klaus's presence and her excitement every time she saw him were clear signs of her affections towards him. Heck, even the anger and annoyance she had felt when he told her that he had 'urgent matters to tend to', she'd been jealous. Jealous of the 'matters' that were taking away her Klaus.

Haruka sat up, her thoughts a jumbled mess. What would she do now? Did Klaus like her back? She hated assuming people's feelings, but she was fairly certain Klaus liked her back. There was something about his attitude that hinted he had feelings for her. But…What if he didn't? What if Klaus's feelings for her were mere friendship, perhaps he even saw her as a little sister. In that case…She could not wrap her head around the concept. She couldn't imagine Klaus not returning her feelings. There was something in her gut that told her he did.

Haruka liked Klaus, and Klaus liked Haruka (maybe), so what was next? Haruka thought for a moment. Direct approach had always been her method of choice. A simple 'Hey I like you, do you like me back?' always did the trick. It was quick, easy, and nobody's time was wasted. However, Klaus didn't seem like the type of guy who would appreciate a direct confession. His fairytale appearance and the gentleman façade he always put on, told Haruka that he was the type who would enjoy swooping a woman off her feet. And just who was she to deny Klaus of that pleasure?

Haruka giggled at the image of Klaus lifting and spinning her around through a field of, not flowers, but ready to harvest cotton and flax. Ah, her favorite things in the world, all in one picture.

Haruka threw herself on her bed once more. She felt like a teenager all over again, wondering how she should confess to the one she fancied at the moment. After a trip down memory lane, Haruka decided. She would wait until Klaus was ready to make a move. She would patiently wait and give Klaus the freedom to decide when to start their relationship. After all, how long could it take?