Things looked worse than ever.
Miyu and Kanata barely spoke a word to each other. She was still furious with what she thought was an attempt to fool her, and he was still humiliated by her refusal of his confession.
"It's all his fault," Miyu told her girlfriends when they asked her why she and Kanata weren't speaking anymore. She gave a detailed narration of Kanata's confession.
Nanami's jaw was hanging. "Miyu-chan! You and Saionji-kun kissed! This is a first for you, right?"
"That's not important, Nanami!" she replied impatiently, wringing her hands. "The point is, he tried to trick me into thinking that we could actually have a relationship. I swear, he is such a jerk!"
"But, Miyu-chan," Aya said cautiously, biting her lip, "Saionji-kun isn't the type to lie… I think he really meant it…"
"No, he didn't," Miyu said tartly, her fists curled, "He just thinks he loves me, but he really doesn't."
"Miyu-chan," Nanami said in a pacifying sort of tone, "why on earth would he just think he loves you? It makes no sense."
She wailed. "Come on, you guys! He's the class president. The MVP of the basketball team. The Bishounen Award winner for three years straight. Why would a guy like that —" she widened her eyes, "fall for a girl like me?" She slumped, her head on her arms.
"Tenchi! Konishi!" a voice called out later that dismissal.
Nanami and Aya turned to see Kanata running towards them.
He panted, "Did Miyu… say… anything about me?"
The girls exchanged looks. "Quite a lot. She seems to think you were jerking her around."
"And quite right she was to think that," said a stern voice behind them.
"Nozomu-kun! Chris-chan! Kurosu-kun!" Aya said happily. "Hi!"
Kanata frowned a little at them, apparently not pleased at the interruption. "What do you mean, Hikarigaoka?"
"Geez, you're the smartest guy in class and yet you don't know a thing about women," Nozomu sighed, dramatically wiping his brow.
"Shame," chided Santa, enjoying Kanata's bewildered look. "What a real shame."
"Look, will someone please explain what you three are talking about?" Aya burst out. "I hate to admit it, but I am as clueless as Saionji-kun here."
Chris grinned and put her hands on her hips. "Very well. You see, our friend Kanata" she put her hands on Kanata's shoulders, "seems to be all at sea as to why our Miyu-chan reacted like that."
"You told the others about what Miyu and I?" Kanata hissed in exasperation to Aya and Nanami, who guiltily avoided his gaze. "Rumor-mongers…"
"Anyway," Chris said in a louder voice, "Miyu reacted like that because she loves you."
"That's… downright absurd! If she loves me, then she'd be over the moon that I confessed!"
"You have to understand," Nozomu added uncharacteristically quietly. "Miyu's been admiring you for so long, she feels like she's not good enough for you. She thinks she's beneath you."
Kanata guiltily remembered the times when he rubbed his achievements in her face. "Oooooh, crap."
"So that's why she thinks Saionji-kun is playing with her!" Aya suddenly said as brightly as if she just discovered the cure for cancer.
"Yup."
Kanata felt a rising panic. "Wait — then how does that help me?"
"You've got to convince her," Santa said.
"I don't know how."
He winked. "That's why you have us to help you."
"Help me," muttered Miyu under her breath. She was sitting in the bathtub, absorbed in her thoughts.
"Help me," she said again, talking to herself. She looked down at her chest and poked the spot directly above her heart. "Come on, heart. If we're going to get over Kanata, you're going to have to help me.
For instance, you should stop admiring the way he looks."
She scrubbed her scalp with shampoo. "And stop thinking about his kiss! It's going to drive me insane!"
Slathering conditioner on her golden locks, she kept muttering furiously to herself. Random words like "thinks I'm that stupid" and "not a doormat" were audible.
Above her muttering, a soft knock punctuated her thoughts. "Um, Miyu?"
Fury bubbled inside Miyu. "Go away!"
"Come on, we need to talk."
"No!"
"You can't ignore me forever!" Desperation crept into his voice.
"Just watch me!"
She hated herself for feeling warm and fuzzy that he still cared for her. Her heart was drumming rapidly in her chest.
Suddenly, the door slid open with the force of a hurricane.
Miyu shrieked, "Kanata! Get the heck out of here!" She grabbed her towel and shielded her body the best that she could.
Kanata was standing in the doorway with his eyes screwed tightly shut. "I'm not even peeking! I just need to talk to you!"
"You —" She couldn't even find her tongue to throw an insult at him. "I will talk to you when I am fully dressed!"
"I won't give you a chance to slip away from me again!" he replied, folding his arms.
Miyu gaped at him. She had never seen this side of Kanata before. "Are you that desperate to talk to me?"
A dull red flush was creeping into his face. "Maybe. Look, if I let you get dressed, will you swear not to run away?"
"I swear," she said dully, and Kanata left, saying as he closed the door, "I'll be waiting in the kitchen."
Miyu watched him leave and started drying herself off. She threw on her clothes and rubbed her hair with a fluffy pink towel.
Slowly, she lowered her towel, staring at the door. Maybe I should make a run for it while I can, she thought. Maybe Kanata's up to something.
The moment she thought it, she felt sickened with herself. She had always prided herself on keeping promises, and (she felt her stomach squirm with guilt) even if Kanata was fooling around with her, he didn't deserve to be lied to. She wouldn't stoop as low as that,
Sighing, she strode into the kitchen.
"Sit down." Kanata said, his voice unusually tense and nervous.
Miyu perched herself on the very edge of her seat. "What is so important that you barge in right in the middle of my bath?"
"Here's the thing." He took a very deep breath and said very fast, "I'm in love with you."
Seeing her mouth open to argue, he rushed on. "Look, I know you don't believe me, but I need to tell you this. I love you. I'm in love with you. This isn't some silly little crush, and I'm definitely not jerking you around. I love you, Miyu."
She opened her mouth, but closed it again. Obviously, she was speechless.
He reached for her hand, and took it as a good sign that she did not shake him off. "Miyu… We were best friends. You trusted me once. Couldn't you show me that same trust again, and at least believe me when I say I love you?"
Miyu blinked and stared at her left hand, where the promise ring still sat. Did she really trust Kanata?
Yes, a small voice in her head told her.
She blinked back her tears. "I believe you."
Relief broke across his face. "Really? That's great!"
She held up a hand to stop him. "Kanata… Before you get too happy, I have something to say, too."
His face fell. "Oh, okay."
She folded her hands. "You kissed me, right?"
"Yeah," he said nervously. "I'm sorry, Mi—"
But she held up her hands again.
"So, I have a question for you," she said seriously. She leaned forward. "Did I kiss you back?"
Kanata blinked. "What?"
"When we kissed," she repeated impatiently, "did I kiss you back?"
He screwed up his face, thinking hard. "Yes," he finally said, blushing slightly at the memory. "You did."
He hesitated. "Wh — why did you ask?"
Her face turned bright scarlet. "I, um, forgot if I kissed you back."
"Does that matter?" he demanded.
"Yes, of course!" she said indignantly. "That was our first kiss, and it would have been really unfair if I didn't kiss you back."
He stared at her for a moment, then slumped down on the table. He groaned, "Miyu… What does that have to do with anything that I've just told you?"
"Well, I had nothing else to say!" she defended. She stared at the shiny wooden tabletop.
"This is… useless," Kanata said in a flat voice, after a long silence.
"It is," she agreed.
Silence prevailed again.
"Look, it's not like I don't trust you," Miyu said abruptly. "I trust you plenty. I just don't know why you're into me."
To her surprise, he started laughing softly. "Miyu," he took her hands again, "I love you simply 'cause I do. Love doesn't need explanations. I fell for you not because my heart wanted to. I just did. Does that make sense to you?"
"Somehow," she said, sheepishly adding, "Geez, I'm sorry I put you through all this."
"See, if you'd just talked to me," he said pointedly, "we'd have been together for weeks."
Suddenly, she leaned over, grabbed his face, and kissed him full on the mouth.
"Shut up and kiss me," she ordered.
"That is the only order I will take from you," he said as their lips met again.
"It's about time they worked things out," Nanami giggled as she peeked through the window using a pair of binoculars.
"Hey, it's my turn!" Aya whispered. "Hand over the binoculars."
Chris was giggling. "I'm so giddy!"
Nozomu kissed her cheek. "You're so beautiful when you're giddy and red."
"Ssh!" Santa said. "Before we get caught, I want to take a picture." He pulled out his camera, and with an evil grin, snapped a photo of the kissing teens.
The familiar click jogged Miyu and Kanata's memories. As one, they turned towards the window, where they saw their friends, one of them holding a camera. An evil grin was on his face.
"SANTA!!"
There! I finally finished this. I wanted to end it on a light note 'cause most of my fics ended really sweetly… I wanted to make this different. Thanks to everyone who subscribed to this! I hope you enjoy! miyuXkanata forever!