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A Different Start

Chapter 25

After cleaning himself up and getting dressed up as best as he could, Keitaro was waiting for Shinobu down in the living room. He wore a simple blue shirt with white stencil designs and denim pants. He wore a wing pendant that dangled on his chest; he rarely accessorized and thought that it would make him look a bit 'hip' and not make it look like Shinobu was with some nerdy older guy.

Hearing footsteps he looked to the stairs and saw Shinobu walking down with Kitsune, who was grinning widely. Keitaro quickly stood up, surprised at how mature Shinobu looked. For someone her age she looked good. Very good in fact.

The guys are gonna be lining up for her, he thought, thinking about her cooking and cleaning skills.

"You look great Shinobu-chan!" Keitaro exclaimed and Shinobu blushed from the compliment. Kitsune smirked and patted the girl on the back.

"Knock him dead, girl." She whispered to the younger girl and gave her a slight push in his direction.

"T-thank you." The young girl replied and looked at Keitaro, he was dressed quite casually and for some reason she found she could hardly bare to look away.

"Well, shall we get going then?" Keitaro extended his right hand, palm upwards, asking for the girl's hand. Shinobu blushed and shyly put her hand on his. Feeling his warm hand envelope hers, she had to fight to keep herself from fainting with joy.

"You two enjoy yourselves now. " Kitsune said as the two went outside. Shinobu looked back over her shoulder and saw Kitsune giving her a thumbs- up.

Down at the Tea Shop, Keitaro's bike was ready there and Shinobu had to wonder if they would be going on it. Keitaro briefly disappeared inside the Tea Shop and came back out holding two helmets. One was the type that covers the whole head and the other one was open-faced.

"Which one would you like?" Keitaro asked holding up the two helmets and Shinobu pointed at the one without the visor; she didn't like the hot feeling of covering up her whole head. Besides it would ruin her makeup even as light as it was.

Hopping on the motorcycle Keitaro started the machine and gestured for Shinobu to follow him up. Shinobu fixed the helmet on her head and carefully climbed up. Revving the machine, Keitaro put it in gear and shot off in the direction of their destination.

Shinobu felt the wind on her body and she held on tighter to Keitaro, experiencing the same feeling she had the last time she rode with him. She felt secure and safe with Keitaro and she wished that moments like this would never end.

She felt Keitaro going for a tight turn and her body lean to right and tightened her hold on him. When Keitaro eased up, so did Shinobu's hold around his waist and they continued on their journey.

Shinobu had no idea where Keitaro was going to take her and was surprised and a bit hurt to see that he'd brought her to an amusement park. He was treating her like a child and she didn't like it.

Keitaro parked the motorcycle nearby and helped Shinobu get down. She didn't show her disappointment to Keitaro, he meant well she thought. It wasn't Keitaro's fault that he saw her as a kid compared to Motoko. She sighed, then breathed deeply and decided she would enjoy it anyway.

Shinobu did not notice but Keitaro had been watching her and when she faced him she quickly blushed when she saw him watching her. Keitaro, once again trying to be a gentleman, extended his hand to Shinobu and again Shinobu placed hers into his and they walked into Wonderland Amusement Park together.

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Shinobu was amazed at what she saw; everywhere she looked there were brightly painted people entertaining visitors, various streets shows and colorful lights filled the streets. She did not want to admit that she really loved this, because if she did it would only proved that she was still a child.

When Keitaro looked down at her, he noticed her wariness and worried if his plans for the day were going to work at all. As they walked along, a clown had walked up to them and stopped them in their tracks. The clown presented his hands and the pair watched him show his sleeves and make funny gestures.

He then made a deck of cards appear out of nowhere and started shuffling it in various difficult maneuvers where the deck was almost sent flying many times. It looked like magic and various people also started to watch, a small crowd appearing around the three. The clown then made the deck disappear and pulled out a top hat. He twirled the hat around in his hands and made it roll on his shoulders. He then grabbed it with his right hand and, while using his free hand to make gestures, he flipped the hat upside down and a dove fluttered from the hat. The audience applauded loudly and the clown gestured that he would be finishing his act. He showed his hands once again and with a flick of his wrist a red rose appeared in his hand and offered it to Shinobu.

The young girl accepted the token and smiled. The clown bowed and went jumping off elsewhere to entertain other people.

Shinobu held the rose in her hands and looked at Keitaro.

"I see you got an admirer." Keitaro joked and Shinobu blushed deeply staring at the rose. "Hey want to go on the Ferris wheel?" Keitaro asked after a few seconds and dragged Shinobu with him before she could even answer. They sat together in the car and it started to move upwards, the ride slowly taking them up above the trees to see the whole amusement park in a bird's eye view.

Shinobu sighed. The various lights and sounds would have made it romantic if only Keitaro hadn't thought of her as a child she could have been so happy, she sighed again, but this time Keitaro noticed.

"You don't like it here?" Keitaro asked and Shinobu whipped her head quickly to look at him and shook her head, no. Keitaro put his hands on her head and stopped her shaking. "You don't have to lie…" He said and Shinobu looked down.

"I really am happy, I'm here on a date with you Senpai, I couldn't ask for anything more." Shinobu said "I really thought that because you agreed to take me on a date that I could…" She bit her lip and Keitaro put a finger under her chin and lifted her head to look at him.

"What is it?" He asked.

"It's just that." She took a deep breath and looked Keitaro straight in the eye. "I thought I could finally tell you that I really liked you, I mean I really like you a lot. Since the day you save me I've always thought of you of being someone who would be there for me. When I finally had the great chance of getting a date with you I realized, that you just saw me a kid…" She looked down trying to keep herself together. Keitaro said nothing, shocked both by her statements and her courage in saying what she did.

"I know I can't compare to Motoko or Naru-senpai or any other girl that you know, Senpai, but I really liked you. It's only now that it's become clear to me that you see me as a kid." She tried to hold back a tear but she couldn't stop it.

The young girl then felt a warm hand on her cheek and a thumb wiped the tear away. She looked up at Keitaro and was surprised to feel his lips on her other cheek.

"I would never compare Shinobu-chan to anyone else, you are you and that's what I like about you Shinobu-chan, you could only be yourself. " Keitaro said and Shinobu did not know how to respond to his actions.

"I'm sorry if I hurt you. I didn't know you felt so strongly towards me, and yes, I thought of you as a child. But you know what I actually admire you." Keitaro said and Shinobu was confused.

He admires me?

"You work hard every day in the inn, keeping the place clean and making sure that everyone was happy, you're even talented in cooking and a very beautiful girl." Keitaro told her gently. "It's just that I just think of you as a sister." Keitaro said and Shinobu felt her chest tighten from the words.

"A sister…" She repeated softly and looked away. Keitaro gently made her look at him and he stared her in the eyes.

"Shinobu-chan, you're beautiful and talented I know there will be a lot of boys out there that would love to be with you and you'll definitely find someone who you'll fall in love with." Keitaro said and Shinobu held his hand.

"Then why couldn't it be you…?" Shinobu whispered and Keitaro went silent and sighed.

"Because I already love you, just not in the way you wanted."

Shinobu sat silently for a while, staring at the window at the passing park, taking in his words. She already knew that he was in love with some other girl. But she had thought that maybe, she could make him see her as a woman and pick her over his promised girl. But reality was a real bitch and right there in the Ferris wheel where they should be happy being with each other, Keitaro was trying to make her understand that it was just not meant to be.

Shinobu sighed and leaned her head into Keitaro's chest.

"At least let me stay like this for a while" the girl buried her face into Keitaro's chest and she sobbed there for a while. Keitaro rubbed the young girls back and after a while she pulled away her eyes reddish and her make up a bit messed up. "I'm okay now." She said. Keitaro was about to apologize when Shinobu put her finger on his lips, stopping him. "Don't. Whatever you're going to say, don't." She said glaring sternly at Keitaro, who broke into a smile and nodded.

"Thank you, Senpai, for coming clean with me." Shinobu said looking at him "I feel quite refreshed actually, disappointed that we couldn't… but refreshed anyway." They looked outside and when a flash of light sparked in the sky they watched the fireworks in silence. Shinobu looked back at Keitaro and he felt her gaze on him.

"Please Senpai, just one kiss." Shinobu breathed and closed her eyes and presented her lips. Keitaro did not know what he was supposed to do and thought that what he was doing would be a crime or something.

But before he could rationalize what was happening, his body had already moved and he gave the girl her simple wish of a kiss on the lips. It wasn't passionate, just a light brush of lips on another's. Yet the light warm sensation on her lips made Shinobu happy enough and it gave her a bit of closure.

Keitaro pulled back and stared at Shinobu thinking what had he just done. If the girls back at the inn managed to find about this he could kiss his ass goodbye.

"Thank you, Senpai." Shinobu smiled and Keitaro thought that it would be okay to die tomorrow if it meant he made the girl happy. He just hoped Motoko would use the sharp edge to kill him not the blunt one as it would be really painful if it was the blunt edge.

"So, shall we continue with the date then?" Keitaro asked and Shinobu nodded smiling.

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Hopping off the ride Shinobu was all smiles and full of energy she didn't show any sign of sadness. She accepted Keitaro's choice but that didn't mean she would give up that easily. He may love him not in the sense she wanted to be but she could work on that.

Keitaro followed the young girl and Shinobu looked up to him as they were walking. Keitaro looked down to her and asked what the matter was. "You said you I was like a sister to you senpai, yet you kissed me, does that mean it was incest?" Shinobu asked and Keitaro stopped dead in his tracks and Shinobu laughed detaching herself from Keitaro.

She may have accepted his choice but that didn't mean he was off the hook that easily. She's going to make him pay a little for hurting her maiden heart like that. Besides teasing Keitaro was so much fun.

A/N: Well heres chapter 25. I give thanks to my BETA reader Sirilac. Maybe now I won't be scolded for having bad grammar in my story.