CAPITULO 10: "Happy to see me?"
"It's a shame you have to leave already." Mami sighed as Madoka and Homura put on their shoes in the entrance. Madoka smiled apologetically at her sempai.
"Yeah, but you know we have school tomorrow and I've already missed my curfew."
Mami smiled at the younger girl. "It's cute that you have a bedtime, Madoka." She paid no heed to Homura's undisguised glare. Madoka laughed in embarrassment.
"More cake for us!" Charlotte called playfully from the next room. There were responding cheers from Elsa Marie and Gertrude.
"It was very nice to meet you!" Madoka called back in genuine gratitude. "I hope we see each other again and have some more fun together!" The group of circus performers voiced their agreement before busying themselves with Mami's treats. Homura was already standing by the door, silently beckoning Madoka to follow her.
"I'll see you two at the Archery Club tomorrow," Mami said with a wink as the pair stepped out into the hall. Madoka snapped into a salute at Mami's words.
"Of course, Captain!" Mami laughed in delight at Madoka's seriously cute antics. Homura just gave a curt nod and a simple, "We'll be there."
When the door to Mami's apartment shut closed behind them, enclosing the pair in a delicately decorated hallway, Madoka looked at Homura expectedly. The raven haired girl actually shifted her feet in brief discomfort. "What is it, Madoka?"
"Isn't it time?" Madoka inquired in a serious tone of voice. Homura maintained Madoka's gaze before breaking away. "You kept looking at the clock in there. I figured it was time, and that you didn't want to do anything in front of the other girls." Homura sighed quietly. While part of her was happy that Madoka had realized a detail like that and acted for her sake, she couldn't help feeling slightly ashamed and distressed that Madoka knew about this aspect of her life, the part of her life that was ruled by time. "You don't have to be embarrassed about it," Madoka smiled angelically at the taller girl. "At least, not with me!"
A slight hesitant smile appeared on Homura's face. "I'm not embarrassed." Homura murmured to Madoka, wary of the other girl's ability to disarm her so easily. From a pocket she recovered a small bottle of prescription pills. "I merely prefer to keep my private life private." Madoka frowned as she watched Homura take several capsules from the bottle and dry swallow them.
"It's that secretive attitude that's keeping you from making other friends!" Madoka chastised gently. A slight shudder went through Homura's body as the pills took effect. She swallowed the last bit of aftertaste the medicine left behind and glanced at Madoka.
"I'm not… putting up a wall with you, am I?" Homura seemed more insecure than usual as she asked this question, a hint of alarm in her voice. Madoka couldn't help letting the downturn of her mouth slip away naturally when those violet eyes opened up to her. "Even if you did, I'd tear it down!" Madoka proclaimed, taking Homura's hand and leading them to the elevator. Thank god for Madoka, Homura thought to herself. She wasn't the first person to think that nor will she be the last.
.-.-.
The door to Sayaka's apartment was clumsily opened. Shuffling steps and muffled grunts punctuated the entrance of two girls, their grocery bags were carelessly dropped by the entrance. It was dark inside and it took several moments for someone to bother fumbling for the light switch. There was something of a small struggle going on as soon as the door was kicked shut. Sayaka had a firm hold on Kyoko's body, and the redhead was struggling in a way that suggested she wasn't really trying to get away. Kyoko growled in frustration and dissatisfaction, making Sayaka giggle mischievously in anticipation.
"I swear to god Sayaka, if you tease me," Kyoko panted as the back of her knees hit the couch's arm and she was pushed down. Kyoko then shuffled backwards until she hit the other side of the couch, keeping a wary eye on Sayaka the whole time.
"You'll what?" the evil grin easily detectable in Sayaka's question. "You brought this on yourself, so you just sit there and take it." Sayaka hopped over the couch arm and crawled towards Kyoko, stopping to kneel just short of where she was sprawled. With her finger she motioned for Kyoko to turn around. With extreme reluctance Kyoko slowly swiveled her body so that her back was facing Sayaka.
Kyoko bit her lip and closed her eyes in shame, though blood bloomed across her face and neck. Sayaka had sounded all too pleased when she said that, but Kyoko had no choice but to submit in this case. She did bring it on herself after all…
Sayaka wasn't being all that gentle either. In fact, she took to her task of touching Kyoko with a zeal that surprised both of them. Kyoko had no choice but to just sit there and take what was being done to her, biting her lip even harder in order to muffle her sharp intake of breath.
"Seriously Kyoko, when was the last time you've combed your hair?" Sayaka asked in frustration as she attempted to run a brush through Kyoko's hair.
"Fuck you, Sayaka. Seriously, fuck you." Kyoko growled in contempt, not in the least bit amused that she was being forcibly groomed like some kind of pet that had escaped into bad weather.
Sayaka laughed in an "as if!" kind of way. "Not my fault you lost at rock paper scissors!" Sayaka grunted as she diligently untangled unruly locks of flame-colored hair. Kyoko ground her teeth together when her hair was pulled particularly hard. For Kyoko, the hands in her hair felt too good not to be considered molestation. That's why she couldn't decide whether she should start yelling "RAPE RAPE RAPE!" and throw Sayaka out the nearest window or jump the unsuspecting blunette in a flare of physical stimulation.
"Kyoko, you've got to stop squirming!" Sayaka demanded.
"I can't help it." Kyoko growled by way of response. Sayaka rolled her eyes and tried to take a different approach to get Kyoko to loosen up. She placed a gentle hand atop Kyoko's head and soothingly ran her fingers through the unruly hair.
"Hey, relax, okay? You're too stiff. This can be nice if you let it." Sayaka murmured gently, letting her hand slide down Kyoko's hair and rub her shoulder. Her efforts were for naught since Kyoko stiffened up even more, but for entirely different reasons. Sayaka didn't realize it, but she was subjecting Kyoko to what felt like physical torture, and the redhead thought she would just die from how hard she was blushing.
Sayaka detected that Kyoko wasn't exactly enjoying herself and sighed, giving up on getting Kyoko to loosen up. Oh well, all that mattered was getting this girl groomed, and Sayaka sure as hell was going to feel a lot better once this task was done. Of course, since Sayaka was kneeling behind Kyoko, she couldn't see the blush that indicated that Kyoko was enjoying this a little too much and was uncomfortable with the implications.
'I am not enjoying this,' Kyoko thought resolutely. 'I will not relax. I won't. She can't make me.' However, due to Sayaka's handiwork, Kyoko dozed off a few minutes later in spite of her previous resolve.
"… I should've known." Sayaka suppressed a grin as Kyoko nodded off and leaned against her. Sayaka had just finished up combing out Kyoko's hair anyway and let Kyoko rest her head against her chest. Sayaka was decidedly proud of herself for a job well done as she ran her fingers through the redhead's now smooth hair.
It really was nice hair, Sayaka thought as she rubbed Kyoko's scalp, easily lulling the girl into deeper sleep. It was deep red, long, and shiny; Sayaka would play with it all day if Kyoko would let her. Even though she was reluctant to stop, the redhead was still in her clothes so she had to be woken up. "Hey, Kyoko, wake up, you have to get undressed!" Sayaka gently shook the slumbering girl by the shoulders. "C'mon, time for pancakes and waffles!" Sayaka said jokingly in a louder voice.
"Mleh?" Kyoko grunted groggily, her head attempting to steady itself atop her shoulders. "You can't make me relax damn it…" she mumbled in a sleepy voice. Sayaka grinned evilly before she lightly nudged Kyoko, making the girl tumble off the couch to the floor rather unceremoniously. It was a perfect face-plant and Sayaka wished she had a number ten card to hold up in the air. But she knew she had to run instead, and run she did.
Using her face to break her fall only left Kyoko stunned for a just few seconds before she jumped up like a scandalized cat and ran after Sayaka. The other girl yelped at the speed with which Kyoko came at her despite her head start. The redhead chased Sayaka through the kitchen and back to the living room. Sayaka tried to put distance between them by rounding the couch and feigning the direction she was going to run. This led to the two running around the sofa in circles until Kyoko jumped over the damn thing and pounced with the frustration of a starving polar bear. She took her prey down as swiftly as a practiced huntress, and the struggling blunette had no chance of escape.
"Damn you!" Kyoko growled as she sat on Sayaka's lower back. "I don't see any pancakes or waffles!"
"That's what you're mad about?" Sayaka said back incredulously, struggling on the floor against the girl sitting on her back. Kyoko laughed sadistically. Of course that wasn't the only thing she was mad about, what with the violation of her head and dropping her on the floor, but any excuse was worth being able to pin Sayaka to the ground in this manner and get revenge. Now it was her turn to do the touching!
Kyoko smiled wickedly down at her prey, brandishing her hands like claws. "This is payback!" She then proceeded to mercilessly tickle Sayaka's sides. The blunette was startled by this form of assault and laughed uncontrollably.
"Nohahahahoho! Stopahahaha! I'm sohaharyyy!" Sayaka managed to apologize between bouts of forced laughter. After a minute of torture, Kyoko paused to gloat.
"Oh, you'll really be sorry once I'm done with you." Kyoko was having too much fun with this. After using the pause to catch her breath, Sayaka took the opportunity to try and free herself. She pushed herself off the ground and rolled over so that she could face Kyoko and knock her off at the same time.
Since Kyoko had been straddling Sayaka's back, when the blunette suddenly rolled over under her, it resulted with Sayaka's hip brushing roughly against a very iffy place between Kyoko's legs. Kyoko was momentarily stunned at the lightning bolt of sensation and gasped loudly. This also resulted in Sayaka swiftly knocking Kyoko off of her with a shove once she was on her back facing Kyoko. Now Kyoko was the one sprawled on her back, staring at the ceiling with her mouth agape. Sayaka sat up and grinned.
"What was that about me being sorry?" Sayaka smiled breathlessly at a still stunned Kyoko. She was quite a sight to behold, all breathless and disheveled from Kyoko's tickling, and the redhead really couldn't find words for a moment. So naturally she answered with actions.
The yellow dress Kyoko wore to the circus smacked Sayaka's face in a rather unladylike manner. Sayaka paused before pulling the dress off her head to bravely face the sight that awaited her. Kyoko was lounging against the floor in a more relaxed manner now that she was in her underwear and gave Sayaka her best winning smile.
Sayaka sighed deeply and shook her head. "You're right, you've made me extremely sorry." she muttered, bunching up the dress into a ball and tossing it back into Kyoko's face. "Well, I wanted to get you out of those clothes anyway, so this all works out." The redhead huffed as she caught the dress before it hit her face.
"So you admit that was your goal all along?" Kyoko provoked with a mischievous grin.
"Why must everything turn out unnecessarily sexual with you?" Sayaka asked in disbelief before she held her hand up to stop Kyoko's expected response. "Whatever. Tomorrow is a school day, and it's late enough as it is." Sayaka gave Kyoko a warning look. "Don't expect to sleep in my bed again."
Kyoko scoffed and joined her hands behind her head to lie on the floor more comfortably. "Never asked. The floor suits me just fine." she growled, annoyed that her naked body and winning smile didn't get as much of a reaction from Sayaka as she had been hoping for. Sayaka regarded Kyoko for a moment before she got up from the floor and headed for her room, ready to be rid of her own clothes. Before she reached her door she turned back.
"And you'll be here when I wake up, right?"
Surprised by the question, Kyoko twisted her head towards Sayaka to see the girl's face seriously regarding her. "Yeah. I'll be here when you wake up." Kyoko finally answered, mustering up something of a small reassuring smile. She was sure it was half-assed, but Sayaka seemed to accept her words all the same. When Sayaka disappeared into her bedroom, Kyoko buried her face in her dress and groaned as loud as she could.
She couldn't sleep for a long time. Crashing on Sayaka's floor in her underwear was plenty comfortable for her, but Kyoko remained wide awake and staring at the ceiling many hours into the night. Something Homura had said was really bothering her. Was she really being tamed by staying with Sayaka? 'Tame' might not be the right word, but that was what it was starting to feel like.
Sayaka seemed to think that by simply putting a saucer of milk near her front door would keep Kyoko here (and she would be right in that sentiment). BUT! Kyoko could admit to herself that she was starting to feel the beginnings of an attachment to the girl. Hell, more than an attachment. It was probably safe to say at this point that Kyoko was attracted to Sayaka. Kyoko blushed slightly as she quietly admitted this fact to herself.
Kyoko kind of liked Sayaka Miki – boyfriend drama notwithstanding – in the pants. It wasn't exactly a mind-blowing revelation, just a simple statement of fact. Huh. It only took about a second for Kyoko to accept it. Earlier she had been skeptical about her own body's reactions, but now that she thought about the events that had transpired throughout the day, it was obvious enough.
The thing was though, what was Kyoko willing to do with this information? Two options came to mind; the first one was obvious as Kyoko turned her head to give the door to Sayaka's bedroom a lusty stare. Ah, but therein laid the problem: Sayaka would reject her quicker than Kyoko could get naked. Besides, that would probably turn into a prickly situation very quickly.
Kyoko removed her gaze from the closed door and went back to scowling at the ceiling. The other option that had come to mind was the natural knee-jerker reaction for her: get the hell out of here. And fast. She didn't come to Mitakihara to make friends or get attached. In fact, her original plan was just to stay for a few weeks before moving on. It was like that for every city she passed through so far and this one shouldn't have been any different. Somebody like Sayaka shouldn't have been an issue. Moreover, it would without a doubt be mentally healthier for everyone involved if Kyoko left before she got too attached. Especially for Kyoko herself.
A third option presented itself in her mind that gave her pause as she considered it. It was a warped, unexpected and annoying option. But Kyoko liked those kinds of options.
These were the thoughts that plagued Kyoko in the early hours of the morning.
As for Sayaka, only one thought plagued her the moment her eyes awoke the very next morning. "Crap, I'm late for school!" She didn't even have to look at the clock to know she was late. Her body could just instinctively recognize that the sun was not supposed to be that high when she woke up. So she didn't dare look at the clock for fear that school was already over.
She barrel-rolled out of bed, getting out of her pajamas in record time and straightening out in front of her closet. She threw it open, mentally deciding she didn't have time to shower. Then she realized that she had left her school clothes in the laundry room.
"I'm late! I'm late!" she chanted in a panic as she burst out of her room naked and dashed across the foyer to the wash room. However, on the way there, a particular aroma caught her attention and she stopped dead in her tracks when she passed the kitchen. Kyoko was at the stove, wearing an apron over a black tank top. Kyoko grinned broadly upon seeing Sayaka.
"Yo." Kyoko quickly did a glance-over of Sayaka's naked body. "Happy to see me?"
"You're here," Sayaka stated rather dumbly, "with pancakes."
"I did say I would be here when you woke up." Kyoko turned back to the stove. "You like your pancakes fluffy?"
"Crispy, please." Sayaka responded automatically. It was sort of surreal, the normality of this situation. She honestly half-expected Kyoko to be gone by morning again, but this was a sort of pleasant surprise for Sayaka. It'd been too long since she woke up with someone else in the apartment.
"Weren't you saying you were late for something?" Kyoko asked as she carefully flipped a pancake in the frying pan. It had been a while since she had done anything like this, so she was out of practice.
"Gah." Sayaka made a panicked noise when she realized the truth in Kyoko's words and became occupied with her task of getting dressed once again.
"Heh." Kyoko's amused gaze followed Sayaka out of the room, only growing more appreciative as she appreciated one specific area. Sayaka had a rather nice rear end. After a moment she realized something was sizzling a bit too much and she hurriedly turned her attention back to the pancakes. "Well, she did say she wanted them crispy," she muttered in dissatisfaction as she slid charred pancakes onto a nearby plate on the counter. Her first attempt at cooking hadn't gone as well as she expected. Oh well, didn't matter.
It took thirty seconds for Sayaka to get dressed, a new personal record to be sure. She stumbled out of the laundry room and into the bathroom, quickly grabbing an elastic band and tying her hair back in a short messy ponytail with most strands hanging by her face. She splashed water on her face and attempted to brush her teeth with her razor until she realized her mistake with a start and pulled the razor away from her mouth. She staggered a bit as she attempted to put on her thigh-high stockings while running out of the bathroom. Do not try this at home.
Apparently she had enough time to stop at the kitchen, roll up a pancake, and cram it into her mouth with one bite. Kyoko watched in surreal bemusement as Sayaka chewed and swallowed. "That was good. Thanks." Sayaka flashed her roommate a quick approving grin before she went to grab her school bag.
The compliment managed to bring about a pleased flush to Kyoko's features. "I have a hard time believing that when you can stuff burnt food down your throat," the redhead managed to call out.
Sayaka put her shoes on, grabbed her bag, and was finally ready to go. "Going!"
"Hey, Sayaka!" Sayaka stopped when Kyoko called her, looking back at the redhead curiously but impatiently. Kyoko scratched at her cheek in brief self-consciousness. "Um, just wanted to say… Th-thanks. For everything." Kyoko trailed off, looking somewhere off to the side rather than at Sayaka herself.
"EH?" Sayaka exclaimed, that being the last thing she had expected the other girl to say. At the reaction, Kyoko finally looked at the blunette with a slightly disgruntled grin.
"Never mind. Get out of here already, dumbass."
But Sayaka just kept staring at her with a dumbfounded expression. Why would Kyoko suddenly thank her? What brought this on? And what exactly was she being thanked for? She stared harder at the redhead with suspicion. "Kyoko, why would you..?" But all it took was a brief glance at a wall clock hanging somewhere behind Kyoko's head to make Sayaka's eyes bug out of her head before she was out the door faster than a horse on steroids.
The slight grin Kyoko had been displaying slowly slipped from her face as she stared at the empty apartment entrance where Sayaka had gaped at her a few seconds before. A vacant look settled on her features as she removed the apron she had found in the kitchen, revealing her regular street clothes underneath. She slipped on her boots and put on her jacket. And as an afterthought, she went to the hanging wall clock Sayaka had looked at, and corrected the time on it. Sayaka must've forgotten it was daylight savings time.
Grabbing her own share of her breakfast, Kyoko slipped out the door with nary a sound. Giving the apartment door one last considering look, Kyoko simply walked away. This was a simple matter, as she had walked away from many more important things in her life. 'After all, I only said I would be there when she woke up.' Kyoko thought to herself as she absentmindedly chewed on her charred pancake. She grimaced. 'This tastes like shit,' she thought as she stepped into the elevator and hit the button for the ground floor. 'How could Sayaka eat this stuff?' She found her mind wandering to Sayaka's thankful smile, and within the confines of the elevator walls, she allowed herself to blush once again.
But then the elevator doors opened and Kyoko continued walking away from… whatever this was. She shook off any excess emotion left in her before she finished off the food item, and stepped into the sunlight.
.-.-.-.
Lines of ducks scattered, old people gaped, and children screamed when a blue flash tore through the street. "OUTTA MY WAY!" Sayaka hollered as she ran as fast as she could down the street toward Mitakihara High School. She ran past the place she would normally meet up with Madoka and Hitomi, but they weren't there.
Well, it was probably a given Hitomi wasn't there, but even Madoka thought Sayaka was that late and went on ahead? Sayaka pushed herself even harder, going so far as letting out a battle cry that made any dog within a mile start barking.
By the time Sayaka spotted the school, her lungs and legs were burning and she was drenched in sweat, but she hoped she could still sneak into class without anyone the wiser. As she got closer, however, she was presented with a confusing sight. There were students milling about casually and walking calmly through the entrance of the school, which was weird because school started an hour ago, right?
Sayaka weakly slowed down her Olympic sprint, staggering to the entrance on weak, shaking legs and looking about her in befuddlement. She was panting harshly and other students were giving her strange looks or snickering. She stopped under the arching entrance that proclaimed the establishment as Mitakihara High School, and reluctantly pulled out her cell phone to check the time. She was an hour early.
"O-Oh, HAH nothing like a HAH good morning run! HAH" Sayaka said obnoxiously loud, face flushed red from the run and her raging embarrassment. Her legs were trembling and her uncontrollably hard breathing gave her an overall creepy impression. She regretted trying to cover up her obvious mistake as people were now avoiding looking at her completely. She probably looked like a pervert.
"S-Sayaka-chan!" a girly, breathy voice called out in distress. The blunette turned her head to see Madoka running towards her in the proper girlish fashion, wrists up and looking completely out of shape. "Sayaka-chan, you ran right past me! Why were you running so fast?" Madoka pouted as she came up next to the girl in question.
"I… thought I heard a scream and came running!" Sayaka lied unconvincingly, trying to calm her heaving chest. But Madoka seemed to buy it.
"Eh? Is everything alright?" Madoka asked in concern, looking about her as if looking for the scream victim.
"Of course! Super Knight of Justice Sayaka-chan is on the scene after all!" Sayaka laughed, throwing an arm around Madoka's shoulder, looking like she was giving her a hug when in actuality she was trying to lean on the smaller girl since her legs felt like they were going to give out on her.
"You're just so reliable, Sayaka-chan!" Madoka said agreeably, taking Sayaka's weight and leading them to the nearest bench.
'Thank God for Madoka.' Sayaka thought.
"Ne, Madoka," Sayaka spoke up after a few minutes of resting. "I'm in love with Kyosuke."
"EEEEHHHHHHH?" Madoka exclaimed, smacking her small hands to her cheeks in shock. Sayaka gave the girl an unconvinced side-long look.
"That sounded so fake."
Madoka dropped her hands and smiled sheepishly. "Well, you were so stubborn about keeping it a secret, I wanted to act extra surprised!"
Sayaka groaned and dropped her head down. "So I was that obvious, huh?"
Madoka rested a reassuring hand on Sayaka's shoulder. "You're an honest girl at heart. Lying to yourself doesn't suit you."
Sayaka looked ahead of herself listlessly. "Lying to myself, huh?" She didn't think that was exactly the case. More like, she always knew she had feelings for Kyosuke, but the more those feelings grew, the more she bundled them up tight. 'I wonder… why do I set myself up for failure like this?' Sayaka couldn't help thinking to herself bitterly. She never said anything. She never even considered telling him about her feelings before. Maybe… Maybe she figured that things would never change? That she would always be able to stay by his side and simply listen to his music? She had been content basking in his brilliance that way.
"Sayaka, make sure to stay with Kyosuke-kun, okay? He is a very talented boy who will surely be very famous in the future! You'll make me very proud if you were able to bring home a boy like that!" Sayaka vaguely remembered those words being spoken to her when she was a little girl by her own mother.
Sayaka had taken her mother's words to heart. She stayed by his side. She fell in love. But somewhere within herself she had the feeling that she never quite belonged in that spot. Kyosuke was such a special person that one day he would grow wings and just fly away, leaving Sayaka behind forever. She was always afraid of that day. Perhaps that day had already come and gone. But Sayaka was still stuck with her compacted feelings. Feelings that in the past few days were bleeding out into the open ever since Kyoko unwittingly stabbed that bundle through the heart in the elevator. Her love was now an open wound, one that needed to be healed quickly lest infection ate away at her heart.
Her feelings were fully unraveled before her, loose and swaying. It would only take the least bit of effort for Sayaka to just let go of them and let them swirl into the wind and into Kyosuke's sight…
"You know, I'm not the one you should be telling that to anyway." Madoka interrupted Sayaka's musings, appearing in her line of vision and looking at Sayaka sternly. But the blunette had already had that thought, and she grinned widely at the pinkette.
"Yeah, I know. I'm working on it."
"Ohhh." Madoka appeared impressed by the decisiveness in her friend's voice and smiled back. "I'm glad to finally hear that." They settled into a content silence. Sayaka realized that she had friends supporting her through this; she never had to deal with this alone. She was all the more grateful to Madoka for silently lending her encouragement even when Sayaka was too self-involved to notice.
"Hm? What is it, Sayaka-chan?" Madoka inquired when she noticed the blunette simply staring at her. Madoka reached for her hair self-consciously. "Are my ribbons crooked?" Sayaka's look grew playful.
"You know, since you're my wife and everything," Sayaka gestured to Madoka with mock slyness, "it's only natural that I practice my confession on you."
Madoka blushed dutifully at Sayaka's words. Her hands fidgeted in her lap. "W-why would I help you be u-unfaithful to me?" she stuttered shyly, playing along with Sayaka's game, but embarrassed about the public display.
"It's only natural I have a mistress or two," Sayaka grinned mischievously.
"Eh? Kyosuke-kun is your mistress?" Madoka couldn't hide her amusement this time. "And who is that other Mistress you have? Kyoko-chan? Jeez, you're such a player, Sayaka-chan!" Madoka looked proud of the fact that she was able to turn Sayaka's game around on her. Sayaka worked her mouth as if fighting to find something to say as her face became progressively red. Madoka giggled, content to tease the blunette to that small extent.
Suddenly, Sayaka took the pinkette by the shoulders and made her face her. Her gaze was passionate and her face serious. "I'm in love with you."
"Wah-wah-wah-wah?" Madoka was shot through the heart instantly.
"All right, good practice, Madoka! I might be less nervous now!" Sayaka proclaimed, releasing her friend, who appeared to be dizzy from those lady-killing words.
"You two…" a voice near the pair spoke up in mock shock. They turned to see Hitomi standing there, hand to her mouth as she looked at the pair. "But I thought you only loved me, Sayaka!" she exclaimed, running away in the opposite direction dramatically.
"Ah!" Sayaka stood up and automatically ran after the green haired girl. "One of my mistresses!" However, due to her tired legs she didn't make it far and ended up tripping and falling on her face. The trio of girls shared a hearty laugh. It was almost as if everything was normal between them again.
'I'll tell him. I'll tell him today. I have to.' Sayaka thought to herself in resolution as they waited for classes to start. Now that she was fully invested in her decision, it was all Sayaka could think about. It was kind of like when she decided she would have that talk with Hitomi yesterday. She had no idea what she would say or how to go about it. She just knew she had to put her feelings out there and get this whole thing resolved once in for all, even if it killed her on the inside.
So yes, she'll wing the damn confession. The thought made her heart leap like an acrobat performer as they made their way through the crowded hallways. Through the glass walls and bars that surrounded each room Sayaka could easily spot the boy in question seated at his desk and surrounded by friends. Sayaka's legs suddenly felt like they were weighed down with lead and she slowed her pace to postpone the inevitable. Madoka noticed and took Sayaka's hand, giving it a squeeze of encouragement before leading her into the classroom. Sayaka flashed her friend an appreciative smile before letting go of her hand. The classroom was bustling with her classmates. Homura raised her hand in greeting when she spotted Madoka walking in. The pinkette waved merrily back, making the usually stoic student smile slightly at her.
Hitomi had walked ahead to give her boyfriend a warm greeting, which he returned full heartedly. Sayaka's mouth felt really dry as she walked by his desk. She was his friend; it'd be weird if she didn't greet him. Swallowing dryly, Sayaka raised her hand and waved at Kyosuke when they made eye contact. He smiled easily at her and she couldn't help smiling in return.
This wasn't so bad. It wasn't as if she had to confess to him immediately or anything. Hell, she's held this crap in for half her life! Surely she could wait out until the right moment. She would take her time, pace herself. Work her heart into a gradual state of apathy for the inevitable wound she would probably receive. Until then, acting natural was the best way to go Sayaka concluded when she opened her mouth to greet her crush.
"Morning, Kyosuke! I'm in love with you!"
'Haha, oh wow. Just kill me now.'
Sayaka Miki just confessed to the boy she loved in the briefest, most anti-climatic way possible.
The reaction was one to be expected. The room fell silent and Sayaka just knew she was being stared at. She could feel the eyes from all around, but she refused to look at them. She focused only on Kyosuke, since his reaction was the only one she cared about most. Even though she hadn't meant that comment to slip out so effortlessly. For one terrifying moment, as she stared into his grey eyes, it was like her whole life teetered on the edge of a precipice. And no matter how much she wheeled her arms, she was going to fall, fall, fall, fall, fall…
"Um," Kyosuke smiled brightly after a second of uncertainness. "Good one, Sayaka."
Kyosuke could plainly see the flash of hurt across Sayaka's face at his words, and he grew even more uncertain. All eyes were on them, and he suddenly felt like he was the odd one out on a secret. The flash of hurt was quickly erased and she set her mouth in a grim line of determination. He recognized that look; it was a look she'd wear when she rejected something. Kyosuke had witnessed that look when she'd told him about her father or the time when she confided to him that she didn't want her mother to remarry. He didn't like that look.
Sayaka stepped forward closer to his desk, ignoring the stares and pressing forward with her impulse. "I'm serious, Kyosuke. I love you. I've loved you since we were kids. I want to be your girlfriend."
Kyosuke couldn't help staring at the girl. It was just so sudden and without warning, he couldn't help his disbelief. He opened his mouth to ask is she was joking once again, but looking into Sayaka's earnest eyes it was plain as day that she wasn't. This was certainly not Kyosuke's first confession, but he had never expected one from his childhood friend. He glanced at Hitomi, who watched him almost as expectantly as Sayaka herself. She didn't look surprised or even worried, just waiting for his response.
The violinist turned his attention back to a stock-still Sayaka, who was looking at him with the most heartbreaking mixture of resignation and hope. He frowned, hating himself for making her go through this. "I am truly sorry Sayaka…"
Sayaka barely flinched at his words, breaking her gaze away as she swallowed the beginnings of a lump forming in her throat. Her heart which had previously been teetering plummeted down her chest through the floor. It hurt. She had expected this response, but damn if she wasn't prepared for this hurt. But she didn't want him to see her cry. "Don't be." She forced a half-smile on her face. "I just wanted you to know."
The bell that marked the start of the school day chose that moment to intervene. The students in the classroom shifted gawkily, still watching Sayaka expectantly for some kind of scene. Even their homeroom teacher, who had been standing by and watching the scene play out like a television drama, seemed reluctant to tell the students to get in their seats to start class. "Alright, class is starting!"
Sayaka went into automatic pilot and sat heavily at her desk. Her desktop lit up with her arrival and listed her schedule for the day. She really didn't want to be here right now.
It was then when the whispers started.
"Did you see that? Sayaka confessed to Kyosuke in front of everyone!"
"I don't know whether to think she's brave or just plain stupid."
"I thought they were already together…"
"I recorded it on my phone! Gotta share this."
The teacher cleared her throat to dispel the whispers and dove right into a spiel about high school being a place of study and not one to be distracted with petty cases of young love. Sayaka wished the floor would swallow her up and spit her back out on the other side of the world where no one knew her. She spent the class with her head buried in her arms.
The rest of the school day wasn't much better. When homeroom ended, Sayaka escaped the classroom as fast as she could, but the story had spread ahead of her.
"Did you hear? That girl confessed to that violin genius this morning."
"Ha! Like she had a chance! Who is she anyway?"
"Poor thing, she got shot down so quickly. I heard he even laughed at her!"
Sayaka grit her teeth and kept her eyes in front of her as she marched through the halls. Why was she still here? Damn it, all she wanted was a second of quiet to gather herself; she didn't need to be constantly reminded of her failure. It kept replaying in her head enough as it was. She really wanted to bang her head on the wall for her impromptu confession that had guaranteed everyone would know. It really was her fault. She felt so utterly stupid.
Her march led her to the nearest restroom and she practically kicked the door down and scared off any girl lingering in there with a fierce glare. Once the room was cleared Sayaka took to gripping the edges of the nearest sink. She was fighting valiantly, but she knew the tears were cracking the metaphorical dam behind her eyes and there really wasn't any stopping them. Her grip tightened and she stared hard at her warped reflection in the faucet head until her eyes became bleary with the incoming emotions.
The restroom door slowly opening and a soft "Sayaka?" in Madoka's concerned voice made the first few tears come effortlessly. Sayaka looked over at the pinkette and smiled sadly.
"Hey…" Her shaky smile and thick voice failed to reassure Madoka. "I really should have seen that coming, right?" Madoka wordlessly walked up to the other girl and tugged Sayaka into her arms. Madoka held her gently and Sayaka wrapped her own arms around her friend's back and dropped her forehead to the other girl's shoulder. Madoka rubbed her back and murmured soothing words while Sayaka cried against her.
This sucked. It felt like her feelings had been sucked out of her chest, leaving a gaping and empty feeling in its place. It was actually physically painful.
It took a few minutes, but Sayaka was able to calm herself down with Madoka there. She took a few shuddering breaths against Madoka's shoulder before lifting her head and wiping her eyes. "Geez, Madoka… Have you gotten taller?" she couldn't help noticing as she used the back of her hand to rub at her eyes. Madoka looked so close to tears herself that Sayaka paused. The other girl's bottom lip stuck out and trembled while her eyes swam with tears.
"Uuu… Sayaka…"
Sayaka couldn't help cracking up a little at the expression. Is that what she had looked like a moment ago? Madoka pouted and raised her fists like she was going to hit Sayaka but didn't.
"Are you okay now?" Madoka asked after a few seconds of Sayaka's choked laughter. Sayaka's smile faded a little as she seriously considered the question.
"I'm not okay. Not really." She took a deep breath and held it in for several seconds before she released it. "But I'm better. Thanks, Madoka." Sayaka placed a grateful hand on the shoulder she had cried on and felt guilty for leaving a wet spot there.
"Maybe I should take you to the nurse's office." Madoka considered quietly, but Sayaka shook her head.
"That's alright. I think if I don't distract myself with class right now, I'll go nuts. Heck, I might even manage to learn something today if I focus hard enough." the blunette joked half-heartedly.
Madoka didn't look like she agreed, but gave a consenting nod.
The following class, Sayaka really did try to focus all of her attention on the lesson, but Kyosuke's words were stuck in a loop inside her head. "I am truly sorry, Sayaka…"
Lunch was even worse. It was a time to allow the students to interact and spread the story even wider. Sayaka sat down with Madoka to eat at their usual spot. Hitomi would normally eat her lunch with them, but she had a boyfriend so it was only natural she wouldn't join them, or that's what Madoka told Sayaka to reassure her.
"She sure has guts, eating like nothing happened this morning."
Sayaka felt her body twitch at the voices around her. Her appetite was nonexistent at this point.
"She confessed to Kyosuke, right? He has a girlfriend, doesn't he?"
"And get this; his girlfriend is actually one of her friends!"
"What! No way!"
"It's true. His girlfriend is Hitomi-chan. They used to eat together all the time!"
Madoka tired to get Sayaka's attention. "Ignore them, Sayaka-chan."
"That pisses me off! If my friend confessed to my man, I'd never forgive her!"
"Right? It's disgusting how desperate that girl is for a man."
"Why is Sayaka such a bitch?"
The chair Sayaka had been sitting on scraped against the floor as the girl shot up to her feet with fury in her fists and words on her lips. She was blazing mad now and damn it if she wasn't going to take out her feelings on one of these gossipers!
However, a firm hand on her shoulder stopped her. Sayaka blinked several times in confusion before she focused her blue eyes on the person holding her back. The hand on her shoulder belonged to Hitomi, who was giving her a hard stare.
The classroom hummed with sudden anticipation of a confrontation between the two friends. Phones were pulled out of pockets and even students wandering the halls paused to stare through the glass walls.
"Hitomi?" Sayaka spoke up nervously. Hitomi looked almost as mad as Sayaka had been a moment ago, but her anger was concealed in a more refined manner. Hitomi released her grip on Sayaka and set down her bento lunch in the seat next to her. With an air of finality, she took her seat next to Sayaka. The students around them, who had been a expecting some sort of fight between Sayaka and Hitomi, were rather surprised by the move.
"Aren't you going to sit and have lunch with me, Sayaka?" Hitomi asked casually as she set up her lunch. Her voice was so relaxed; one wouldn't think she was making a statement with her actions. Wanting to do something other than looking dumbfounded, Sayaka plunked herself down into her seat and stared at Hitomi. The green haired girl tried her best to ignore the blunette's attention, but her blush won out. "What?"
Sayaka just broke out into a grin. Her friends just continued to surprise her today. "You're kinda cool, y'know that?"
Hitomi hid her answering smile behind a napkin. "I did know that."
The class went back to their own business, clearly disappointed by the lack of explosions.
"Sayaka-chan was plenty cool today, too!" Madoka piped up, obviously happy with the lightening mood. "I couldn't believe it when you confessed in front of everyone. My heart almost stopped. That was so brave of you!"
Sayaka's forehead clonked against her desk and she groaned. "I don't want to think about it anymore!"
"Well, Madoka's right. It was brave of you. As expected of my rival." Hitomi said conversationally. Sayaka lifted her head quickly and fixed Hitomi with a deadpan stare.
"I got rejected. Some rival I turned out to be."
"Don't think he'll just ignore this," Hitomi fixed her rival with a resigned look. "I know he'll want to talk to you further about your feelings. As well as he should. And I hope you can do so in a more private setting."
Sayaka blushed and looked away awkwardly. Half of her had hoped to get away with just the rejection and be done with the whole matter. But things just don't work that way. And Kyosuke wasn't the type of guy to let his friends suffer if he couldn't help it. That's why she loved him in the first place. "Where is Kyosuke anyway? Shouldn't you be eating with him?"
"He had a meeting for a scholarship he had to attend to." Hitomi answered smoothly; tactfully ignoring the slight bitter tone Sayaka had said her last sentence. "And just because I have a boyfriend now doesn't mean I'll forget about you two." Sayaka showed her displeasure at how mature Hitomi was by stealing something from the other girl's bento.
Madoka picked at her food with her chopsticks and sniffed. "I don't like to think you two as rivals. Friends are always better to have." she said quietly. Sayaka and Hitomi exchanged a glance and smiled at each other. Mutual was their instinct to dote upon their most honest and genuine member of their small group.
"Of course you're right, Madoka." Hitomi said with a bell-like laugh. "That's why I'm eating here. With my friends." She nodded to Sayaka. The blunette answered with a grateful look before turning to Madoka with a teasing grin.
"I dunno, Madoka… I'll make anyone who tries to steal you away my rival!" Madoka mock-pouted at the teasing, but she appreciated Sayaka returning to her normal playful attitude. "Speaking of rivals," Sayaka looked around her suspiciously. "I haven't seen transfer student around yet."
"Homura-chan said she had to go somewhere." Madoka said as she sucked her drink through a straw, looking out of the glass walls and into the hallways as if wishing the dark haired girl would appear as suddenly as she would go. Her shoulders drooped slightly at her sigh. Hitomi and Sayaka exchanged another glance. Madoka really was as easy to read as a book. How strange that she had managed to befriend someone who seemed the very definition of a brick wall.
.-.-.
"Ah."
"Ah!"
Homura and Kyoko only seemed to notice each other when they got in each other's way. Kyoko had been strolling unhurriedly down the street, while Homura strode steadily up the street, both incidentally lost in thought. Neither were the types who would move aside for other pedestrians and so were suddenly faced with the dilemma of mentally willing the opposite person to get out of their paths with their stares alone. So it was only when their equally forceful looks met that they perceived each other's presence.
And neither seemed particularly thrilled to see the other.
A/N- Contrary to popular belief, I LIVE! I had two betas this chapter, RPPuzzle and Rhyno Holter. You guys are awesome!
Chapter titles courtesy of Rhyno Holter as well.