With a newfound resolve, courtesy of Principal Sakamoto, Krad was ready to approach Risa. If he was going to win her over, he would have to act more like Satoshi. The thought made him cringe and he balled his fists. He loathed his roommate from the start and the thought of having to be more like him only strengthened that feeling.

That blue-haired punk, always being so perfect and excelling at everything. They had only one class together out of all their years at the same school, but Krad would never forget all those dark feelings he held after being there with him day after day, only to come back to the room that they shared. It was torturous to see someone younger than him, beat him at everything. To receive all that praise and recognition without having to use any effort made him want to ring his neck!

However, being angry at past memories and gloomy thoughts would not help him win over the younger Harada. He'd managed to see a few brief encounters that she and Satoshi had. She was always asking him questions, smiling when he'd answer her and getting annoyed when he didn't. Yet she was always with him, it seemed, happy or irritated. Something about him made her stay. Was it because he was so quiet? That air of mystery does seem to attract women. Was it because he was good at everything? With his potential to do and become anything, it wasn't surprising that women would try and be with him. Or was it because he gave her the cold shoulder? Risa seemed like the kind of girl that was used to having boys flock towards her with hopes of impressing her. Could she be chasing after the bluenette because he was the first boy to not fall all over himself to be with her?

He knew he could easily work up a sense of mystery about him and it shouldn't be too hard to fool her into thinking that he was just as talented as his roommate. Impress her with things he knew he could do well and avoid things he couldn't. However, giving her the cold shoulder wouldn't work this late into the game. He would just have to hope and pray that it wasn't that quality that kept her by his side.

After being lost in thought for quite some time, Krad looked up to see Risa heading for her room. He picked himself up off the floor, only now realizing that he had been sitting outside of his room, and walked towards her. His thoughts we racing now, trying to find a way to lure her interest with something mysterious, or perhaps he should do something to impress her. However, having no time to really think, he said the first thing that came to mind.

"Miss Risa?"

Risa stiffened at the mention of her first name. She was used to being addressed as 'Miss Harada,' or 'the younger twin.' She couldn't recall if this was the first time her first name had been used, but it didn't really matter. The man who called her made it all the more uncomfortable to hear.

She turned around to face him and faked a smile as she waved. She was hoping he was just trying to say 'hi' and that she could get inside her room and lock the door. Her last few encounters with him had made her reluctant to run into him. After he had left her that rose, he'd made it a point to see her every morning. He would stand a little too close for comfort next to her, use any excuse he could to touch her (putting his hand on her shoulder, knocking hands with hers, etc.), and he kept on inviting her to do things with him. Just the two of them. Normally, she'd be flattered or have no problem rejecting him (politely, of course), but there was something in his eyes that scared her and told her it was a bad idea. She didn't think he'd try to hurt her, but she was intimidated nonetheless.

"Just getting back? Where've you been?"

"Oh, um, yeah. I had Band practice with Hiwatari today."

"I see. How's that going for you?"

"It's going great. I'm doing so much better and I actually think I kind of like the clarinet now."

"That's good, I'm glad to hear it. Say, would you like to come in for awhile? I'd like to talk to you."

"Um, well I was hoping to do something with my sister tonight, so-"

"She's not in there. I've been sitting out her for awhile now and I haven't seen your sister."

"Oh... well-"

"Just come in for a minute."

With that he gently grabbed her hand led her into his and Satoshi's room. After she was inside, he shut the door and stood in front of it, watching for her reaction. Finding that she looked frightened and tense, he relaxed himself a bit and sighed. He felt awkward and wasn't sure what he was actually doing. This surely wasn't going to impress her and he wasn't exactly being mysterious. So what was he doing? He wasn't sure, but he had no choice but to run with it now.

"Relax, Risa. I just want to talk for awhile. I wanted to ask you a few questions."

He walked over to what appeared to be a mini fridge and opened it. While he was digging around in it, Risa surveyed his room. It was just like hers and Riku's, only much darker and messier. The blinds were drawn, clothes were strewn out everywhere, the beds were unmade, little bits of trash covered both nightstands and various parts of the floor. It was a typical guy's room, but it also had an eerie feel to it.

Risa was drawn out of her thoughts when Krad stood up and shut the fridge door. He had two cans of something in his hand and he looked embarrassedly around the room.

"Sorry about the mess. We're not the cleanest of people. Here, would you like something to drink?"

He held out a cold can to her and she took it. In the dim light she saw it as a can of pop. She muttered a 'thank you' and opened it, taking small sips. Krad pulled out their desk chair for her to sit in, while he sat on his bed. They sat in silence for awhile until Risa became rather unnerved and eager to leave.

"So, what did you want to ask me?"

"Oh, right. I just wanted to ask you what you thought of Satoshi."

"Hiwatari? Why?"

"I suppose I'm just surprised at the fact that you enjoy spending time with him. He's always been the type of guy to be closed off and reserved. He's like an ice cube. Women adore him because he's smart, handsome, and good at everything, but even they haven't gotten as close to him as you have. And here you come along, not squealing and fussing over how he looks or what he can do. No, you're more interested in something else about him and it draws you to him. Tell me, what is it?"

He hadn't intended to be as serious as he was, but it seemed to be the only way to find out what he needed to do next. It was a long shot and would probably make it harder for him to act accordingly, but he had to know. His own curiosity ate away at him and he had to satisfy it.

"I like being around Hiwatari for a lot of reasons. At first, I just wanted to get close to him because no one else was. It was almost like a game. I hung around him because he was mysterious and I love a good challenge. Don't get me wrong, though. He was never just some project for me to complete and be done with. I've always genuinely wanted to get closer to him. But now it's gotten more serious. I've learned quite a bit about him and a little of what makes him who he is. It's truly amazing, how he's been through so much and still turned out as wonderful as he did. There's a lot of thing I could say to tell you why I hang around him, but I suppose the real truth is... he's turned out to be a great friend."

Krad's eyes widened and his whole body froze. Friend? No, scratch that, a great friend? The human ice cube being a friend to anyone is unheard of and preposterous. He never showed kindness toward others, only politeness that came off snobby and rude. Yet the woman before him is trying to say that he's not only showed her kindness, but he's become important to her - a great friend.

While his head was spinning, the door opened and in it was a surprised Hiwatari. He looked over at his roommate and Risa and then at the rest of the room. He flicked on the lights that no one seemed to notice were off, surprised that they relied on the little bit of light coming in from behind the curtains. He set his stuff down and walked over towards them. He took a moment to take in Krad's face and then looked over to Risa who appeared to be blushing slightly. He cleared his throat and shook his head.

"Miss Harada, would you please come with me?"

He walked back over to the door and held it open, while Risa walked out into the hall. He walked down the hallway, towards the staircase, but stopped a little ways before it. After Risa finally caught up with him, she gave him a confused, yet grateful look.

"Thanks for getting me out of there. Krad makes me a little uncomfortable."

"What were you doing in there in the first place?"

"I didn't have much of a choice. He grabbed my hand a tugged me inside."

Hiwatari raised his eyebrow and started doing a quick sweep with his eyes over Risa's body. He was looking for signs or traces that Krad may have hurt her or touched her, but upon finding nothing, he looked her in the eye again.

"What did he bring you in for?"

"He said he had some questions he wanted to ask me."

"Such as?"

"He asked about my relationship with you."

Now completely shocked, he took a small step back and thought for a moment. Why would Krad ask her such a thing?

"Why?"

"I don't know."

"What did you tell him?"

"I told him that you were a great friend."

It didn't seem possible, but he managed to muster up an even more shocked and confused expression than before. He looked wide-eyed and the girl before him and just stared at her. He seemed to be on the same train of thought as Krad. A great friend? What was that supposed to mean?

"What do you mean by that?"

"What do you mean, what do I mean? I mean that I think you're a great friend. Aren't we friends, Hiwatari?"

She looked at him with her brown doe eyes, full of hope and sincerity. He didn't know what to do or how to respond. He knew that over the past couple of months, they had inevitably gotten closer, due to all the English projects he was partnered with her on and all their time at Band practice. Not to mention that she's been asking him all those questions and he had no choice but to answer them. Of course they had a bond of some sort, but he never figured it meant they were friends.

If he said no, he could only imagine how horrible her reaction would be. She could suddenly become furious and start beating him to death, she could nag his ear off, or even worse... she'd start crying. He hated to see people cry, he wasn't good with emotions at all, but something told him that he really didn't want to see her cry. And if he said yes, well, she wouldn't be going away anyway and she couldn't possible get more annoying, so...

"Y-Yeah. We're friends."

She beamed at him and threw her arms around him without even thinking. She was giggling and smiling and all he could do was blush. He didn't even have the sense to return the embrace, but before he could fix that, he was let go of when someone's voice rang through the hallway. He turned around to Riku bounding up the stairs, semi-tired and slightly out of breath.

"Riku, why did you run all the way up here?"

"Because, I've got some news! Ms. Love said that play opens on December 13th!"

"That's less than a month away!"

"I know! That also means that's when the concert will be."

"What? No, no, no! I'm not going to be ready in time!"

"But you've been practicing with him for months!"

"That doesn't mean I'm ready!"

As the twins jabbered on about the play and concert, Hiwatari stared blankly at Risa, trying to comprehend what just happened. He wondered what it would mean for their "relationship." Would things change? Was she going to be more hyper and annoying? Was she going to expect him to act more "friendly" towards her? Was she going to hug him more?

The thought made him blush again, but he absentmindedly let out a small smile towards the younger Harada. Maybe this wasn't going to be so bad.