26: Shiny

"What? A sleepover at Mari's?" I asked in disbelief.

"Yeah! After all we've done, we should have some fun!" Chika replied, twirling around. "Get your stuff ready! Oh yeah, bring your swimsuit too!"

"Ehhh? It's not even spring yet!"

"Did you look outside? It's the best weather ever! It's, as Mari would say, SHINY!" Chika swiped open the blinds, letting in the rays of the sun.

"A-ahh! You're blinding me!" I shrieked, covering my eyes.

"Oh, sorry. Anyway, what do you think about this one?" Chika held up a skimpy orange bikini in front of me, grinning.

"Eh-" my eyes shot wide open. "Urm, well… I think… that would look great…."

"Aww, thanks! I can't wait to see your muscles, Darren!"

"Umm, I think I'll wear a shirt…"

"Ahhh, stop being so shy! I've known you for like, how many months now?"

"Okay, okay! Just don't judge my body."

"Well, I'm counting on you to do the same." Chika winked, and left the room. Okay.

I groggily began to pack some clothes for the night. Man, that was an amazing concert we had last week. Everyone was going crazy. I mean, I must have taken like ten selfies with random girls. Well, Howard got around thirty, that jerk. Anyway, we had a wonderful performance and I seriously think that we're gonna break the 100 mark. Like totally. I'm even on Youtube now!

After we ate breakfast, Chika, Riko, and I met up at the dock, where the others were waiting.

"W-what?" I saw that the other girls were all wearing beach outfits, their bikinis exposed under their robes. Oh no, this is going to be weird.

"Heya," Kent said, grinning. He kept his eyes glued only to Yukio. Wow, so loyal!

"Morning, everyone," I heart a British accent behind me, and saw Howard arrive.

"Oh, hi, Howard!" Emerald called, running over to him already clad only in her green bikini. She gave him a big hug.

"WOAH, WOAH, HOLD UP," I said, crossing my arms. "What's this?" I motioned with my hands back and forth between the hugging Howard and Emerald.

"What? I mean, you took Riko," Howard said nonchalantly, stroking Emerald's hair. What?

"Hey, hey, he didn't take me," Riko corrected, a hand on her hip. Wow… my eyes were instantly glued to her; she was dressed in one of those blue short shirts which exposed her shoulders and stomach, and a pair of white short shorts. She had her hair in pigtails, tied at the ends with pink bows. Her eyes flickered over me indignantly, and she smiled slyly, bending close and putting her lips to my ear. "Yet." Her voice came out in a whisper, so that only I could hear. My body shuddered slightly, and I grasped her arm.

"Riko… what do you mean?" I said quietly.

"Oh, nothing," She replied loudly. "Great job, Darren-kun. You really played well at the concert."

"Thanks," I replied.

"Yo, yo, please explain," Howard said. "What are you talking about?"

"Did I ever say Darren and I had a thing?" Riko asked.

"Well, basically… I mean, you guys are the perfect pair…." Chika interrupted.

Riko blushed, surprised at this.

"Ch-Chika!" Riko said exasperatedly.

"Tee-hee!" Chika winked, and You giggled.

"Anyway, guys," Mari announced, "Let's go! Hop in the boat! You-chan, start the engine!"

"Aye-aye!" We piled into the boat and sailed through the calm waters, under the shining sun.

"Welcome, Miss Mari," A butler greeted us, as we got onto the dock. "Welcome, everyone."

"Oh, hey!" Mari replied. "Everyone, leave your bags here! The staff will get it for you. Now, let's have some fun in the sun! Shiny!"

"Whooo!" Kent whooped, as he splashed water at Yukio.

"Hey!" Meanwhile, Howard was chasing Emerald back and forth across the beach, trying to catch her in his arms. I sat underneath an umbrella, admiring the landscape. The beach looked out to the mouth of the bay, where the endless ocean continued. A few tourists were on the beach with us. A large stone patio filled with tables and chairs had steps which led down to the sand, and palm trees lined the sides of the hotel, around a stone path that wrapped around the building.

"Want some fruit punch?" Mari said, appearing beside me. She was down to her purple bikini, from which her large chest peeked out. She bent down, handing me a purple-colored fruity drink.

"Is it alcoholic?" I replied, looking at her package instead of her face.

"Shhh," She said, placing a finger to her lips. "Here. Take it."

"Mmm," I said, taking a sip. Mari sat down. "Darren, I really wanted to thank you for what you've done. You, and Yumedake, you're going to change everything. With all the fans you've earned… our school will definitely be saved. I owe you… anything… I'm sorry if… this," she said, indicating the beach, "Is not satisfying for you. Do you want… anything?" Mari looked at me with expectation, her eyes flitting to and fro from mine.

"Um… well… the thing I want," I began, "Can't really be given…"

"Riko, right?" Mari said knowingly.

"Y-yeah."

"Well, it's true, I can't give her to you… but I can help you!"

"Really? What are you going to do?"

"Hold on!" Mari leapt to her feet, turning with a swish of her behind. She ran across the sun soaked sand, to where Riko was walking down the steps from the patio, carrying a basket. I saw Mari whisper something into her ear, pointing over at me. Riko's eyes followed her finger, and made eye contact with me. She giggled, lifting a hand to cover her mouth. Mari turned and winked at me, then ran away to play with the others. Riko looked around, as if making sure no one could see, then approached me, smiling. My heart began to race, seeing her striding across the beach gracefully.

"Hi, Darren," she said simply. "Why are you sitting here alone? Don't you want to play with the others?"

"I want… to play with you," I blurt, then quickly cover my face. "I mean, not like that!"

Riko giggled, brushing a strand of hair from her face. She set the basket down on my towel.

"It's okay, I know what you mean. I wouldn't mind playing with you too." Riko stretched, then did a whimsical spin in the sand. She tugged on her pigtails, then let them fall to her shoulders.

"Well, here goes nothing!"

Riko pulled off her shirt, revealing a white bikini with a pink floral pattern. I gulped, eyes transfixed on her slender frame. Her eyes briefly saw mine, and she reached down to her shorts, unbuttoning them and slowly unzipping. Her face was rose pink as she slid them off her body. The bottom was of the same design, with a small skirt covering a small amount of her rear. Her long legs shone, smooth and perfect. She willed herself to look at me, eyes searching my face for approval. I did not notice that my mouth hung open in awe.

"Hahah!" Riko burst into laughter. "I don't look that good," she teased, plopping down next to me under the umbrella. She reached over and sipped from my straw. "Mmm! Mari's punch is good!"

"Y-you… want… one…?" I stuttered, heart racing as Riko's exposed body drew closer to mine.

"No, it's okay! I have yours." Riko scooted closer, so that her shoulder was up against me. I felt her tenseness ease, and she let her legs fall so that her right one was touching my left. I instantly broke into a sweat, as I felt her sweet, soft skin. We spent minutes in silence, gazing out across the ocean. A light breeze passed, caressing her cheeks and blowing hair across her pleasant face. Before she could brush it away, I did it for her.

"Thank you," She said, embarassed.

"Mm." I couldn't stop glancing at the pair of legs next to mine, at the cute bikini she wore, at her quaint lips. I was enraptured by her aura, and it tore at my heart. If I could just reach over… and kiss her….

"Darren-kun, it's such strange weather today, isn't it?" Riko said, interrupting my thoughts.

"Hah! I guess. Well, back in California, we have weather like this more often than not. This is like normal."

"Really? That must be nice!"

"Nah… It gets really tiring having the same old sun beating down on you."

"Say… do you ever miss home?"

I thought for a moment.

"Home? No. This is my home."

"Aww, that's so sweet… But don't you miss your friends, your family?"

"What is there to miss? I mean, here, I'm with you… and everyone else."

"But there must be something… something that you look forward to seeing again."

"I don't think so. I have everything I want here. I never want to go back."

"Hahaha! I wish I could feel like you. I still have things I miss in Tokyo. All the convenience, the nightlife…"

"Well I don't. You know what? Maybe we should start a bonfire later, and I'll just throw my passport in and burn it!"

"In that case, we're gonna have to deport you," Riko said, smiling.

"I'll run, then! I'll run to the mountains, where they'll never find me. I'll live off the land, build my own little cottage…."

"You're funny," Riko laughed. "I wish I could spend forever here too. I mean, with you."

Her words took all of mine from my mouth, and I searched frantically for a reply. I decided to place my arm around her, caressing her. Riko leaned her head on my arm, her hair trailing over me.

"Don't worry," I said, squinting up at the sun. "I'll find a way to make that happen. Definitely." I felt my love for Riko growing uncontrollably, my heart set to burst. A determination formed inside me, a desire to be with my dear princess forever.

"You better," Riko whispered. "I'm counting on you." She sat up, opening her basket. "Here. Let's go play with the others! I got some sunscreen. You know how I said I hate the smell of sunscreen, and abhore it with all my heart? Well, this was the one time I enjoyed it. "If you want to," Riko said, "You can rub it on for me."

"W-what?"

"Go ahead." Riko tossed the bottle to me, then turned over on the towel, exposing her back. Arms shaking, I opened the sunscreen bottle and squirted a blob onto my hand. What the heck is going on!? I placed the cream on Riko's back, and began to spread it around, smoothing it out with my fingers. She giggled as I did so, swinging her legs back and forth.

"O-ok, put your legs down, I'm going to do them next," I said nervously.

"O-kaayy," Riko sang. I obtained another blob, and divided it between my two hands. Then I reached down, placing a hand on each of her thighs. "Yaaaa!" Riko squealed, stifling her giggles.

"S-sorry!" I said, but did not take away my hands. I moved them across the length of her legs, down to her feet.

"Wow, you're good," Riko said sensously, turning onto her back. "Now… front side…"

Oh no, how am I supposed to do this? I avoided eye contact, and began working the sunscreen across her arms, shoulders, then- "Go ahead," Riko whispered. I quickly did the parts of her chest, moving to her belly. She whimpered as I did so, and I felt my insides break down.

"Ahhh, Riko! Why on Earth are you so pretty!?" I cried, putting the bottle down.

"Hey. You're not finished."

I worked up her legs, up to her upper thighs. Then there came the part of her body which her bikini bottom exposed, her rear and her front. With all the courage I could muster, I lathered the sunscreen onto her butt, bringing my arms around and across her bikini lines.

"Kyahahhh!" Riko screamed, jerking up and pulling my hands away.

"Ahhhh! I'm sorry!" I yelled. We both breathed heavily, sweat beading down our necks.

"No, I'm sorry. I just got a little nervous… I mean, it's the first time a boy did this to me…"

"Well, this is the first time I did this to a girl!"

"O-okay. There's still my face left…" I looked to her face, preparing a final drop of sunscreen.

"Did- did you get sunburned already?" I asked, examining her blushing face.

"I was going to ask the same thing," Riko replied, seeing mine.

"It's time you two arrived!" Mari yelled. "We're just about to start our volleyball game!" I looked around to see the others position on opposite sides of the volleyball net, all eyes on us.

"Ah, sorry," Riko apologized.

"What were you two doing this whole time?" Yohane asked, grinning.

"Nothing," I replied. "How bout' you?"

"Well, we were all having fun in the sun," Kanan interrupted. "Except for you two."

"Whooooooo!" Howard and Kent whooped and whistled.

"Ooooohhh, how was it?" Chika asked, nudging me.

"What was what?" I asked frantically.

"Well, the fact that you two are 'sunburned' in the face without even coming under the sun clearly tells us something," Dia observed.

"We should have done that!" Emerald said, turning to Howard.

"Stop it, guys," Yukio commanded. "Don't make assumptions like that."

"Okay, okay! Let's get playing!" Mari said, and we began our game. As we played, I felt the tension in my body leave me, and I laughed, striking the ball with all my might.

"Nice one!" You called, slapping me in the back. The ball came vaulting back over, and I dove for it, crashing into Mari.

"Ahhh!" I landed face-first onto her, my hands breaking my fall- on top of her chest. I stopped for a moment, realizing what had just happened. "AHHHHHHHHH!" Mari squirmed under me, pushing me off. She quickly stood up, blushing profusely, covering her chest with her arms. She turned away, violated. Noo! I got to my feet.

"Soorry! Mari-senpai! It was an accident!" Mari shyly turned to me. "I… know…"

"Hahah! Mari, what's wrong?" Kanan said, running over. "I mean, you always touch mine!"

"He's a boy," Mari accused. "I'll sue you," she said to me.

"W-what? I said, it was an accident!"

"Just kidding," Mari said. "But… I don't really feel comfortable when people do that…"

"Even with me?" Kanan said slyly, wiggling her fingers around Mari.

"Hey!" Kanan grabbed Mari. "Ahhhh!"

We all burst into laughter, enjoying the company of our treasured friendship.

The bonfire burned bright, iluuminating the darkening night. Sparks shot into the air, with them our spirits of elation and camaraderie.

"Tonight, we dedicate our thanks to Yumedake, for saving our school!" Mari announced.

"Yeah! Go Yumedake!"

"Our heroes!" We all drank purple punch, gathered around the fire.

I felt a strong, tender feeling of bond and connection with those around me, who had been with me through thick and thin. I observed their figures, sitting around in the sand. These friends who have given their all, with me, to make our dreams come true.

"And as you know, today is that last day for Uranohoshi applications," Mari continued.

"Wait, it's the last day?"

"Yeah, you didn't know? But don't worry, we'll make it!"

"But I thought this happened after the second perfomance."

"No, we already did our second performance," Chika explained. "Remember? You came here at the end of summer. We were already months into the school year. We already did our first performance."

"What? But what about how we needed a live band to perform?"

"Well, they implemented that rule after the first performance."

"Oh, okay. And here I was thinking that we still had another performance before finals."

"Nope! This is it. Next thing, we're on to finals!"

"Yeah! Let's sing a song, shall we?" Mari suggested. "Since we're all together anyway. And we won't be for much longer." We all agreed, smiles all around.

"Try and be brave

I know it's scary

I could not do it from the start either…

...Let's chase them as many times as it takes and don't lose

Everyone fails sometimes

But dreams won't fade, dreams won't fade

Let's chase them as many times as it takes and don't lose

Because today after all is today and once you wake up, it'll be a new morning...

...I want to say that I've fulfilled my dreams

That there's nothing undone, but when will that day come?"

"Look! There's already 98 people!" Mari shouted, as we gathered around her laptop. We were in Mari's large room, which was filled with elaborate furniture and a curtained bed. "Don't worry, guys! We can sleep now! Everyone get to bed!"

"Yeah!" They cheered, slapping me and the others of Yumedake on the backs.

"Thanks to you, everything was changed," Dia said, embracing me. "Smile," She whispered. "You did it."

The others left the room, chatting happily.

"We're gonna wake up, not to one hundred, but two hundred!" Riko said, pumping her fist in the air. "Good night, Darren-kun! Finally, we can sleep well. After all those sad nights… We've done it. See you in the morning!" And with that, everyone left the room. Except for me.

"Darren-kun, why are you still here?" Mari asked, concerened. "You should sleep! We've had a long day of fun."

"Mm. Thanks, Mari. Today was a great day. And thanks for… your little suggestion… to Riko. What did you tell her, anyway?"

"Oh," Mari chuckled. "I said that you looked lonely and that she should talk to you. That's it."

"Oh, okay."

"Well, if you want, you can sleep here, just for tonight," Mari said, rising to close and lock the door.

"What? In your room? That's…"

"Don't worry about it. You and I can be the first to see our results in the morning!"

"Sure…"

"Here, sit!" Mari sat down on her bed, and I climbed on with her. She was wearing her silk night robe, and her golden hair was brushed and luscious. The moonlight shone in through her windows, illuminating her soft features.

"I want to thank you once again, for everything you've done." Mari fingered her robe, and twirled her hair. "I feel like I should reward you even more… you don't understand how much saving the school means to me."

"I'm… happy…" I replied, gazing into her. She suddenly reached out and pushed me down, pinning my arms to the bed. She placed her legs on either side of mine, and leaned her face close to mine. She puckered her lips, reaching forward. Wait, what? No, no! I can't cheat on Riko!

Mari kissed me on the forehead.

"Teehee! You thought I was going to make you cheat on Riko?" Mari rolled off me, stretching out her arms and legs. "I was just playing with you. Don't worry… you'll be with Riko soon."

"I hope so," I replied.

"Well, we should sleep now. Unless you want to stay up until we reach a hundred applicants," Mari said, yawning.

"Hey look! It just changed to ninety-nine!" I said, pointing at the laptop on her desk.

"Whoo! Yeah! Now I'm definitely going to sleep. See ya later!" Mari yanked the sheets over herself. Maybe I should get to sleep too. I laid back my head, thinking. What a time I had. Today, the past week, the past month… This whole experience. Who would have thought I would go through all this? I was just a random person, who somehow managed to appear across the world, at this exact place. Only fate could have brought me here. I gazed up at the moon, its soft and melancholy glow shining upon the waters. I felt tears well up in my eyes. I'll never forget this place. I won't.

Just then, a movement caught my eye. I looked once more to Mari's computer.

APPLICATIONS CLOSED

TOTAL APPLICANTS: 99