Can you you believe... we're almost done with this story?! I plan on ending this within the next five to ten chapters or so, so...hope you enjoy the rest!

Yeah, I didn't go into detail about Miki's outfit simply because I wanted to leave it up to you (readers) to decide what she's wearing based off the small details I put in there.

Disclaimer: I'm poor. Nuff said.

Popping a Bubble

Chapter 10: Kiss

"You did what?!" Miku and Lily yelled at the same time, slamming their hands down on Miki's bed. After much beating around the bush and trying to get her to speak, Lily threatened her with making her room smell like someone had thrown up marijuana.

The blonde slammed her palm into her face, groaning at the sight of Miki literally curled up in the corner shaking like a leaf. There were tears pooling in the corner of her eyes and Lily just had to plop onto her stomach, "You know she's gonna be like... weird around you now, right?"

Miku nodded, shaking her head in slight disapproval. However, she exchanged looks like Lily, their lips stretching into mischievous grins. "Well, you could always... I don't know, ask her out like I've been telling you?!" She figured this was the best time to actually get Miki a love life! Of course, with Akita Neru, but it was still something.

"What?! N-no way!" Miki squealed, a blush forming on her face. She threw her pillow at the closest person, and Lily had to endure being pelted with the soft object while Miki yelled all sorts of things in denial. Miku threw herself on the bed to avoid giving Lily a partial concussion and grabbed Miki's wrists with a creepy smile the other girl didn't like.

"Don't worry, when push comes to shove, we'll help you out to shove!" she said cheerfully, dragging Miki to her feet. Lily rubbed her head and laid her hand on Miku's shoulder, pulling her closer, the two creating a sort of pose. "We'll get you guys to go out for sure!"

Lily opened her phone and texted someone quickly, then dialed a number. "I'll call Gumi over," she simply said, turning around when Miku gave her a teasing stare. While she was doing that, Miki fell back on her bed, rolling around with wails of nervousness. Miku placed her foot on the other girl's stomach, effectively stopping her movements, and leaned in to stare at her.

"You know she'll go out with you right? I don't know why you're freaking out!" she said, laughing when Miki's speech fell to a mumble. Miku gave her a thumbs up and grinned, taking out her phone.

"What are you-"

Miku dodged her hands and lifted the phone high in the air, texting at an abnormal pace. Miki already knew who was going to be receiving it and didn't want to know what atrocities Miku would be typing out. "Miku-chan, no fair!" she pouted, crossing her arms when Miku slammed the phone down on the bed with a hearty laugh of victory.

Lily turned around with a laugh of her own, and Miki soon found herself face to face with the other two who grabbed her arms and dragged her to her bathroom. "Date time!" they yelled, throwing her inside with a few towels.

In a matter of minutes after getting in the shower, she heard the door open and close, with Lily and Miku bringing in all sorts of clothing to wear. Miki brought her hands to her chest, watching through the shower curtain the outfit they had chosen for her.

When it opened again, she stuck her head and saw Miku putting down a couple of accessories by the sink. "What are you two up to...?" she asked, her stomach doing all sorts of twirls. When she revealed it to them that she had kissed Neru, she didn't expect them to jump into the mindset that they needed to go on a date.

"Getting you ready for a date, duh," the teal-haired girl replied with a wink, leaving the room with a peace sign. Miki sighed, but then went into a fit of giggles at the thought, her cheeks a cherry red.

Lily and Miku quickly got to work when she exited the shower, helping her with her hair and aide her in putting on her outfit, during which a sleepy Gumi entered, watching with interest as Miki was pretty much being treated like a princess.

"Nice," Gumi commented once they were done, nodding her head. Lily used her head as a place to rest her elbow, eying their work. Miki looked cute, she would admit, and it wasn't too flashy, nor did it look like she was trying too hard. She had a feeling Neru was going to be distracted the minute they saw each other.

Gumi swatted her off her head, but groaned when Lily fell back and wrapped her arms around her neck, "Anyway, you think she'll let you kiss her again?" she teased, sticking her tongue out at Miki's jaw dropping. Lily hid her face behind Gumi's hair, acting innocent. "Geez you're clingy..." Gumi whispered, leaning into her.

"Don't tell anyone else!" Miki yelled, glaring at the texting Miku. The other girl stopped and dropped her phone into her pocket again, whistling like she had never done anything. She let out a shaky sigh and dropped her arms, getting her own phone to check the time. Her eyes widened upon seeing a message.

Neru-chan:

Sent: 5:19pm

I'll meet you there.

She had no idea what the other two had been saying to Neru, but she suddenly was thankful they knew what they were doing.

Neru closed her phone, averting her eyes from the running form of Miki. It was early evening, which meant the air was a little cooler now and wouldn't be a burden on their...date. Not that she considered whatever this was to be a date, and hopefully neither did Miki. This wasn't a date.

"Hi Neru-chan..." Miki slowly greeted, playing with her hair. It had been a few weeks without talking since they last saw each other, and suddenly Miki felt like she was meeting Neru for the first time in years.

Neru nodded, staying silent. Her face stayed as passive and neutral as possible, but on the inside her heart was racing, and it clearly showed by the way she was gripping the hem of her shirt. Nero specifically picked this out after snooping through her phone to avoid her putting them in her pockets if she had chosen a different outfit.

"S-so...where are we going?" the redhead asked, placing her hands behind her back. She cursed her nervousness and sighed, awkwardly pushing back a strand of hair from her face. Neru made no motion to indicate she was going to speak any time soon, which made an ever greater burden on Miki since she had no idea what to do.

After moments of silence, Neru let out a deep breath and rolled her eyes, "We're right in front of the place you said to meet up at. You forgot?" Her tone showed her annoyance, and Miki realized, that other than asking Miku about where they were meeting, she didn't check her phone to read the messages.

Miki shook her head, looking down in embarrassment. This was her first date and of course she had to screw it up right in the beginning. She looked behind them at the clear glass windows of the arcade and raised an eyebrow. Dates normally weren't at arcades if she was right...

"You said there's a boardwalk behind it, and a movie theater," Neru said, taking a step forward, "Let's just hurry up and go."

An image from years ago popped into her brain, and Miki nodded, suddenly cheerful. She giggled and linked her arm tightly with Neru's, causing the blonde to groan in annoyance. "Yeah, there is! I haven't been there in forever though, so I can't say much about it!"

They ventured through the empty arcade, a few boys piling here and there with their friends, some watching them with interest. Neru felt her eyebrow twitch when they were the center of attention, and because they had walked in circles for ten minutes. It felt like eternity in her mind, whereas Miki was too excited to even notice.

"Where are we going?" she asked, trying to pull out of Miki's grip. She failed, so Neru sighed and let Miki guide her to a new maze-like area. Luckily this time it wasn't the same arcade, but a casino. Having never been there before, or heard about it, Neru's eyebrows raised in surprise, then furrowed at the sight of old men staring at them.

Miki giggled, pulling her along to the side where nobody could see them. There was a black door, which led to a red hall with a few paintings and another door leading outside. Neru sighed in relief, having hated the smell of cigarettes and old people all around her.

The beach stared at them in the face, a bright orange color from the setting sun glaring at the calm water and casting a glow to everything around them. Miki took a deep breath and let it out, letting her arm drop to simply hold Neru's hand. She pouted when the other girl tore it back with a blush.

"Meanie!" Miki huffed, going ahead without Neru to the main area where lots of couples and people were walking around. Neru sighed, rolling her eyes at the childish behavior.

Miki stopped when she was looking at bright lights and the smell of ocean brought in by a calm breeze. She turned to smile at Neru, making her freeze in place. The sun's glare behind her cast a comfortable red glow around her and the way she was positioned made her look like an angel, adding a halo due to her squished ahoge. Neru gulped, pulling on her shirt to try resisting the feeling of her beating heart.

"Neru-chan, what do you wanna do?" she asked, skipping back to her. Miki slowly wrapped her arms around Neru's left again, looking up at her expectantly. She was surprised when Neru's face turned a harsh red, she almost expected steam to fly out.

The lack of answer and movement made Miki smile again, so she dragged her to a booth where they both could interact, if only through a simple game.

After hours and finally getting Neru to break out of her shell a little bit, they stood at a wooden railing toward the back of the boardwalk and away from the crowds. Miki slowly sucked her smoothie and let out a sigh of relief, looking out to the ocean. "That was a lot of fun!" she said, turning her head to the still silent-as-ever Neru. "What do you think?"

"Okay," she shrugged, keeping her eyes straight. If she moved them or even glanced at Miki like she did most of the day, she was sure to get a heart attack.

Miki hummed, leaning on her and resting her head on Neru's shoulder. The blonde made noises in her throat but ultimately stayed silent, feeling her skin heat up. "Is it awkward now?" Miki voiced, remembering something Lily said earlier. "Being around me, I mean..."

Was it? Miki acted normal enough, and Neru didn't really care either way...

"No," she simply said, taking a glance at the ahoge poking her cheek. Why it wasn't, she wasn't sure herself considering what had happened, but looking at Miki, and feeling her presence... for the first time in a very long time, Neru felt happy. It was odd, but she knew she did; why else would she allow Miki to cling and be annoying so much around her...?

There was something else. Neru gulped at the inner realization of this, especially when Miki looked back up at her and smiled, reaching her hand out to entwine their fingers.

"Is it awkward now?" Miki asked slyly, feeling her face heat up. It wasn't necessarily fair of her to interrogate Neru like this when this was technically their first date, but the nerves in her body wouldn't allow her to think clearly.

Neru gulped, turning a little so she was staring at Miki's face with shock. In turn, and with a dazed look herself, Miki leaned in closer, just enough so they were almost in an embrace, save for Neru's arms dangling at her sides. Miki rested her cheek on Neru's shoulder, closing her eyes from the bright sun, taking in everything around her.

"No," Neru repeated, trying to get her passive face back on. When it proved difficult, she looked away, her golden eyes full of annoyance and embarrassment. She could see people stare at them, most in disgust and confusion, but she didn't pay them much attention. Looking down she was met with red eyes again, Miki's hands clutching the back of her shirt. "What are you doing..."

Her sentence was cut off short, but she didn't have the strength to pull away. With it, Neru knew one thing:

Furukawa Miki successfully made her fall in love. How irritating.

Ermahgerd! It may sound like it's ending, but it's really not. There's still some stuff I wanna have them go through before it actually ends! Of course, Neru isn't going to act like some smitten sweetheart just because she's in love!

Hope you liked this chapter!