A/N: Tadaa! New chapter :D Okay, my friend KeytoDestiny gave me some awesome tips to improve my work. But I already started this chapter so I thought I'd just finish it in my current style. Hopefully the next chapter will be better.
Chapter 11 - Could it be? A Confession?
"...twins? Really?" Hikari asked as the three of them sat down in an ice cream parlour. It was a small shop, which was decorated with round tables and white, carved wooden chairs. It wasn't too full, so she and Kengo and Yumomi didn't have to raise their voices to talk. Hikari ate a mouthful of chocolate ice cream while waiting for a reply.
"For the one hundredth time, yes!" said Kengo, clearly annoyed.
"Fine." Hikari raised her hands in front of her face in defence. "But how come you never told us? By us I mean me and everyone else."
"Well," said Yumomi. "We didn't know until about two weeks ago." Hikari raised her eyebrows. "Our parents got divorced and we each went with one of our parents. But one day they met again and I don't know...re-fell in love?"
"Yeah, I didn't know it was Yumomi's dad but when they came over I was really shocked," added Kengo. "Our parents told us that we were twins and that they were going to be re-married."
"Woah..." said Hikari. It wasn't everyday that you found two of your friends actually being twins. "So yesterday were you guys planning the wedding?" Kengo and Yumomi both nodded. "Oh...that explains the hug..." Hikari covered her mouth; she didn't mean to say that.
"Huh?" Kengo looked at Hikari, confused. "You saw that?"
"Yeah," admitted Hikari. "I thought you guys liked each other or something like that...and were getting married."
Yumomi and Kengo laughed. "Nah, my little brother is not my type, really." Yumomi grinned at Kengo. "No offence."
"You're only older by ten minutes," grumbled Kengo as if he had had this conversation before.
"Still counts, right Hikari?" said Yumomi in a superior tone. Hikari nodded with a grin. Kengo glared at them both and started eating his vanilla ice cream. The girls laughed at him. Yumomi then looked at Hikari thoughtfully. "Oh, was it because we hugged that you followed us?" Yumomi gave Hikari a knowing look. Hikari turned slightly pink.
"W-well I thought you guys were getting married so I had to follow you!" said Hikari in her defence. "I didn't care about the hug; you guys are siblings after all!"
"But you didn't know we were," said Yumomi with a smirk. "Did you already think we were getting married when you came here?"
"No..." said Hikari truthfully. What was Yumomi trying to do?
Kengo looked up. "Then you came here because...?" Kengo had a puzzled look on his face.
"Oh no, I think I have to go, my mum doesn't want me to be late!" Hikari said, standing up suddenly. She had to go before Kengo put two and two together. "Good luck on the wedding decorations...bye!" Hikari ran out of the mall before Kengo could say anything else.
"That was weird," said Kengo looking in the direction where Hikari had run off to. "She just took off suddenly." He spotted her cup ice-cream and disbelief came onto his face. "She didn't even finish her ice-cream!" He crossed his arms over his chest. "Something's going on."
"Oh, you think?" said Yumomi in a sarcastic voice. She scooped up the last of her strawberry ice cream.
"What's with that tone?" asked Kengo suspiciously.
Yumomi face-palmed. "You might turn up to be as dense as Satoshi!"
"Why?" Kengo felt irritated at Yumomi. He had become annoyed by her more frequently ever since he found out they were siblings. Maybe it came as a package with siblinghood? He often heard Kasumi complain about her sisters.
Yumomi rolled her eyes. "Do you know why she stalked us in the first place?"
"No..." said Kengo, though he was put off by the fact that Yumomi had used the word 'stalked' to describe Hikari following them.
Yumomi rolled her eyes again. "She saw us hug, right?" Kengo nodded. "And she didn't know that we were siblings." Kengo couldn't see where this was going. "That's the reason she followed us."
"Yeah," said Kengo not seeing what the fuss was about. "So?"
"So, she followed us because she was jealous!" said Yumomi.
"W-what?" said Kengo taken aback. "Hikari...jealous? No way!"
"Then why would she follow us if we hugged?"
"Erm...she was worried about us and thought we were sick or something?" said Kengo feebly.
"No!" said Yumomi exasperatedly. "She was jealous! Which can only mean one thing..."
"Erm...that she was jealous that we were having a closer childhood friendship and felt left out?" said Kengo now seeing, and not really liking where this was going. "What else could she be jealous of?"
"If she thought that you might like me. And that made her jealous," explained Yumomi. "That means she likes you."
Kengo stayed silent for a moment.
"Kengo?" said Yumomi with her face showing concern. "Are you okay?"
Kengo turned red. "Are you sure she likes me?"
"HAH!" yelled Yumomi gleefully. "You do like her. We were right!" She pumped her fist in the air. "And don't try denying it because it's no use!" she said seeing that Kengo was about to protest.
"Oh fine..." he muttered if only to stop her laughing.
"You admit it!" she said looking even happier.
"Yeah," he said trying to look indignant. "Anyway, what do you mean 'we were right'?"
"Come on, it was so obvious you liked – I mean like – her," said Yumomi still looking gleeful. "Everyone knew...except well...Satoshi." She sweat-dropped. "Anyway, when are you going to tell her?"
Kengo looked at Yumomi blankly. "Tell her?"
"Well you do plan on telling her right?" said Yumomi giving Kengo a hard stare.
"I-" said Kengo fiddling with his spoon. He then shook his head.
"Why not?" demanded Yumomi.
"I don't think I should..." he said. Yumomi gave him a questioning look. "Okay...even if we like each other...and start dating." Kengo felt his cheeks turn warm at the thought of it. Yumomi smirked, so Kengo hurried on. "But what if we had a fight? What if it's so bad, that we break up? We can't have the same friendship...and I don't want to lose that."
Yumomi sighed. Then her phone rang. "Hello," she said. "Oh, okay, bye." She closed her phone. "I've gotta go, dad needs me to help him cook."
"He's cooking?" asked Kengo looking surprised. He once went over to Yumomi's house and her dad cooked for them...the food was nice, if you ignored all the burnt places of the fish.
"Yeah, he does every day," said Yumomi with a grimace. "Of every week, of every month, of very – well you get the point." They looked at each other and had an understanding that their dad cooking by himself would be a bad idea.
"Bye," said Yumomi.
Kengo headed back home too, looking forward to the delicious food his mum always made for him. At least when their parents got re-married their mum would be the one cooking. He didn't want to eat his dad's cooking ever again.
XOXOXO
"Woah...that's so cool," exclaimed Haruka when Yumomi explained that she and Kengo were twins. "I thought that you guys were getting married or something!"
"I've heard," said Yumomi shooting a grin and Hikari. Hikari glared at her. Fine, she believed Haruka's idea. Yumomi didn't have to keep rubbing it in her face. "But like I said, it's our parents that are getting married."
"I still can't believe it!" said Haruka staring at Yumomi as if she had said she grew an extra arm or something. "Your parents getting married again, being twins."
"It's not that hard to believe," said Kasumi with a shrug. "They always looked alike." Everyone had thought that the two were related in some way, though they had said that it was merely a coincidence. Actually, it was really only their hair that was somewhat similar. But it turned out not to be a coincidence after all.
"What do you think about it Nozomi?" asked Haruka. Then she looked from left to right. "Where's Nozomi?"
Hikari then noticed that it was only four of them standing in a small circle in front of some lockers. She craned her head, looking down the hallways for Nozomi. She was just with them when they walked out of the classroom. Then she spotted her.
"There she is," said Hikari, pointing in the general direction of where Nozomi was. The other girls looked around and waved. Nozomi waved back, but then disappeared down another corridor.
"Where'd she go?" asked Haruka.
"I think..." Kasumi shook her head looking like she thought what she was about to say was crazy. "I think Nozomi is still following Shinji."
"Really?" said Yumomi, looking surprised. "I thought she would've given up on that."
Hikari shrugged. "Nozomi never gives up," she says. She thought she was the one who understood Nozomi the most. For whatever reason that she had gave up her time to try to change Shinji, Hikari knew it must be a good one. Nozomi was not a person that wasted time.
Kasumi nodded. "But I don't understand why she wants to. He's not worth the trouble, that stupid-" Kasumi let out a string of words that she thought were insulting enough to describe Shinji.
The others sweat-dropped. "Why are you so angry?" asked Haruka. "He didn't do anything to you."
"And Hikari's forgiven him," added Yumomi. Yes, Hikari couldn't stay mad at anyone. She really was the forgiving type.
"It's Satoshi," she burst out. "He's been trying day and night to help the chimchar that Shinji gave abandoned. He's not sleeping enough!
It was true, even Hikari noticed it. Satoshi had been looking sleepy these days.
"I'm worried about him..." said Kasumi her face showing her concern.
Before Hikari could attempt to comfort her a voice spoke. "I don't mind if you girls talk about whatever you need to, but could you not do it right in front of my locker." The girls realized where they were standing and stepped aside to let Shuu through.
"Hi Shuu," said Haruka, smiling at him.
"Hi," he said, not looking at her while putting his things in his locker. Hikari saw her friend's eyes narrowed.
"What's with you?" she asked him.
"Nothing," he said cooly, shutting his locker. He walked away without saying anything else.
"What's going on?" asked Hikari timidly. Haruka sighed and shrugged.
"No clue," she said. "He won't talk to me anymore."
"Well, I'm sure he'll come around," said Hikari in a comforting tone. "Me and Kengo always make up whenever we fight."
"Shuu's different," said Haruka. Then her eyes suddenly lit up. "Anyway, speaking about Kengo, when are you going to confess to him?"
"Yeah," said Yumomi. "I asked him the same question. One of you has to do it first."
Hikari blushed. "You asked him? What did he say? I mean, does he really like me?" Her heart started beating a little faster, anticipating the answer.
Yumomi laughed. "Haha, he asked the same thing." Hikari's heart nearly stopped. He asked if she liked him. That meant that he liked her. Unless he was just curious, but everyone had said that he liked her.
"You're turning red," teased Kasumi. Hikari had then just noticed her face growing warmer. "Hey, there's Kengo." They all turned and saw Kengo walking towards them.
"Now's your chance," squealed Kasumi, which was quite uncharacteristic for her. "Good luck!"
Kengo just walked up to her when the other girls walked away to their own respective lockers and acted normally. Hikari, on the other hand, was frozen by the sudden departure of her friends. Did they expect her to confess? Right now?
"Hey," said Kengo. "Where'd everyone go?"
Hikari shook her head. "I don't know." Though she could tell that they were peering from behind their lockers to see what was going on. She suddenly felt nervous. Maybe this was the right time to confess. There was nothing there to stop her was there. "I have something to say..."
"What is it?" Kengo asked curiously.
She stuttered when she spoke. "I – um – I just need to tell you that I like..." she stopped herself. Like. That wasn't a strong enough word to describe her feelings. Then she needed to use the other word, but for some reason, she felt afraid to say it. Doubt rushed past her. Would he accept her confession? But she wouldn't know if she didn't tell him.
"No, it was that - " Hikari took a deep breath. This was the moment. "That I lo - "
"KENGO!" yelled a loud voice, making Hikari and Kengo jump. "Hurry up, me and Satoshi are waiting for you." Jun came into sight and pointed a finger at Kengo. "You said you'd help me us practice for the school ping – pong tournament." Kengo sweat-dropped. "If you don't come, I'll fine you!"
Kengo turned back to Hikari. "Sorry, I have to go. I'll talk to you later." And just like that Kengo and Jun left, with Hikari's confession just at the tip of her tongue.
"Boys," said Yumomi suddenly appearing next to Hikari. "Always causing us trouble." She shook her head. "But what can we do without them?"
"B-but..." Hikari exploded. "WHO DOES HE THINK HE IS! I had two more words to go. Two more."
"I knew this would happen," said Haruka, who along with Kasumi had rejoined them. "Whenever the main girl in a story tries to confess the first time, she gets interrupted." Hikari glared at Haruka, who took step back. "What? I read a lot of romance manga."
"Better luck next time," said Kasumi.
Hikari fumed storming off to her own locker.
Kasumi sighed. "Poor Hikari."
"Don't worry," said Haruka. "They'll be together soon enough."
"No, don't tell me you have some plan to get them together," warned Kasumi.
Haruka grinned. "I won't tell you." Haruka hummed happily to herself.
"Oh no," Kasumi said. "This won't be good."
A/N: Ooh not good at all xD Hoped you liked the chapter...REVIEW!
