A.N. I had a falling out with Nisekoi. Bummed by how what I would call a generic path was taken towards the end of the manga, I had to step away from it for a bit. And by "a bit" I mean two years…

Okay, I probably didn't need or even took that long to get over it. Overall the series was great. I had a lot of laughs; breathed new life into a friendship through discussing it weekly; had my heartstrings pulled at times; feared dearly for Shu's life more times than countable.

But good times aside, almost more so than any other disappointment with the manga (why Haru, WHY?!), is that Fuu never came into the limelight or had an encounter with Raku. And because of that, I think this here is the perfect way to bring to a close these Option B's for our lovable oaf.

I say that understanding this chapter is wholly new content; while the setting somewhat took place, this encounter did not. It stems away from the original premise, but…

Ah heck, I needed to write something about Fuu. So here we go!

Raku and Fuu, at the hotsprings, with the wind chimes.

It's the worst feeling ever.

People say that about a lot of things. Sometimes it's simply the worst, other times it is just plain old the worst. To consider myself a stranger to the phrase would be a lie. But—now hold on, I'm serious here, so hear me out! This truly is, no doubts about it, absolutely inarguable, simply the worst feeling ever.

And that feeling is the one of damp feet against cheap stone tiles. They stick just enough that there's a moist plop every step as the sole of the foot squeezes out remnants of moisture, a sole of the foot that has its skin pulled down from tiles that refuse to let go of the warmth, and—

Ugh-a-huhuh. Can just feel the shivers creeping over me.

But hey, at least that's done and over with, because out the door from the bathroom it is, into the sunny mountainside of crisp, fresh air! Ahh~! Refreshed!

"Isn't it the best?"

In stark contrast to what just passed, yes. Yes it is. The door behind me shuts with a thud, and another thud sounds out right after it that brings my attention across the way. A girl stands there, auburn hair sheen even in the shade of the wall she's near. It spills over bare and creamy shoulders—tips of which have been kissed too long by the sun. "Do you like this too, Raku?"

Her arms meet beneath a chest clothed with lime-green top, all of which moves in a deep breath and—

"Ah ah ah," she says, wagging a finger. "Up here."

It's an honest mistake, but the embarrassment hits hard and my hand tangles in my hair. "Sorry." I know her face, have seen her around a bit and she's even with the group today, but what was her name again?

"Fuu," she says. It clicks. Ah, right, she's— "Haru's friend."

…Who can apparently read minds. She smirks. Not. Scary. At. All. One cough to blow away the awkwardness, and then, "Yeah," I say. "I do like this. It's nice here."

"Haru likes these places too." She steps from the shade and her aura becomes radiant enough that my eyes avert to adjust. "You and her like a lot of the same things. You're really alike."

"We do. It's kinda nice to have a friend like that." Really it is, and while I won't argue that, I will argue something else. "But how do you know we're alike?" She barely knows me, after all, and I'd like to think I know Haru enough that her life isn't a downward spiral of insane coincidences leading to absurd happenings.

Her smirk becomes a smile. "Well," she says, lets it hang as her elbow plops to palm and other palm plops to cheek. She tilts her head ever slightly and eyes deeper than the ocean turn skyward. "You both have a knack for putting others before yourself no matter what."

Eheh, what a nice thing to say. I almost feel bashful! "Ah, thanks."

Her hum is perky and she looks surprised. "Oh, that's not what I meant. I'm sorry." Eh? "You guys do it so much it's silly. You leave nothing for yourselves."

I can see Onodera's smile, her dainty wave, her eyes; a shake of the head disperses the thoughts. Fuu's taken to standing with hands behind her back and gleam in her eyes.

Her head tilts. "It's only bad because you overdo it. You'll never get what you want that way."

What I want? Well, it's already pretty unobtainable. I mean, you'd have to be blind not to see that! Perhaps it's best to humor her. My fingers knead through hair. "How about an example? Like, what you want."

She blinks. She blinks again. Her lips curl. "Me?" Her finger pushes further in the lower lips she's biting, and her hum sings out to the wind chimes hanging from the archway. "I want my friends to be happy."

"Hah~?" It comes out awfully rude, but I can't help it. "How is that any different than what I want?"

"Is that all you want?"

"What about you?" I stumble back, eyes widening because—

She's too close. Way too close! Her risen hand pressed to the wall traps me beneath her. Her skin carries scent of the sea and her hair...

Peach?

Okay, not what I expected, but—

The shivers are back, latching this time exclusively to my spine and tumbling down it, for cold fingertips dance on my chest as she lifts gently the pendant. The chain and tumblers deep within the base clink upon shifting in her palm. Her eyes glisten a moment, dull a moment; I can't help but gulp and remain a statue. "You've taken good care of it." And then they're back, full of color and life, and the pendant is playfully skipped between fingers. The pointed bottom teeters on the tip of her finger.

And then it falls to rest against my chest, its metallic surface bearing the warmth one'd expect her hands to have. She smiles and pulls away. "You have to let go, Raku. Move on to make room for…to let in new happiness." Her hair whips out as she turns. "It's best if you just do what you want to do."

It's almost never good to judge a book by its cover, but does she even take her own advice? Because there she is, stretching arms above her head and holding in a sigh that comes out fully as they fall to her sides. Demeanor proper and normal, not the slightest linger of what just took place in her stature. "Ichijou." I jolt. "We shouldn't keep people waiting."

And then she's off.

Gone.

And I'm left here feeling confused.

Mystified, for crying out loud.

Wondering what the heck happened.

But most of all…

A gentle wind drifts by, its caress so soft and tender that, if not for the quiet chiming, maybe could be said to have not passed by at all.

…I feel nostalgic.

A.N. It's a lesson I think Raku finally learned towards the end of the manga, and I'm glad he did. I feel Fuu honestly could have been the perfect person to convey that lesson to him, but alas, it never happened.

There's something comforting about coming back to unfinished stories like these. It's like reaching out to an old friend you haven't talked to in a while, and the conversation you have with them is pretty much the usual, but you also throw in some new stuff at the end before parting ways again. Poetic, huh? It's quite the happy feeling.

It's been great having all of you readers over the years. Thanks, everyone! Unless the clouds part and the light of revelation bathes me, allowing me to find some way to make the third Haru chapter for this that I have three-fourths written work, I think that wraps up Option B.

Til our next adventure, take care!

And of course: I do hope you've enjoyed!