Chapter 52: Kiss

Aliara only later realized that she had never been in a grocery store before.

She'd been holed up in a mansion all of her life, so naturally she'd never been out of the house to buy food- let alone cook it. Not that they needed much- both she and Killua didn't need to eat much to keep their energy up. Aliara carefully watched what other people did- picking boxes off shelves to keep in a cart, taking fruit they wanted and putting it in a bag, talking to vendors about certain types of meat.

Apparently, there was a hunt for the best food too. She watched countless people push aside lettuce heads and grab ones at the bottom, skip through meats until they found one that was good enough, or carefully inspect an apple under the light. Odd.

"People," Aliara decided, "are crazy."

Realizing that Killua would be waiting for her, Aliara zipped through the aisles, nabbing things that she knew she liked and trying to guess at what Killua would like. She found a shelf with candies and chocolates on it and grabbed a bunch of the little chocolate balls that Killua loved. Shoveling item after item in her bag, Aliara checked her pockets to see if she had enough money before she lined up. She did.

The cashier gave her a funny look but she glared heavily at him and he said nothing, only sneered at her. "That's 2,650 jennis," he said, staring at her pointedly, like he didn't expect her to have enough.

Aliara's blood boiled. Call her petty, but this guy was really annoying. She slapped 10,000 jennis- which was literally just one bill- and said swiftly, "I want change."

He didn't really sneer at her after that.

Getting back to their hotel room was easy. Aliara weaved around the crowd of people in the lobby and took the stairs in a flash, finding their room and fumbling with the key. She shoved open the door, calling, "I'm back!" and proceeded to plunk the bag of food down on the closest bed, shutting the door behind her.

"Food?" Killua piped up eagerly, hoping off the armchair where he had been sitting. "You took a while."

Aliara flushed. "...There was a long line."

Killua didn't question her as he dug through the bag, pulling out apples and cracker boxes before he shouted, "Chocolate! My favorite kind!" He pulled out seven boxes- okay, maybe she'd bought a bit much- and turned to her, surprised. "How'd you know these were my favorites?"

"You mentioned it once," Aliara replied without missing a beat, pulling out a rather large bag of gummies that she loved.

"You remembered?" he asked.

The black-haired girl turned to him, glaring in order to hide her blush. "Do you want them or not?"

"Fine, fine," Killua grumbled, opening one of the cracker boxes.

Their so-called 'dinner' was really random but amusing. Her food choices weren't meal-worthy, but they were tasty snacks that neither of them complained about. Killua mumbled his thanks as he nibbled on his chocolates and Aliara couldn't help but smile. He really did look adorable.

After that, Aliara pulled her bag open and started tinkering with her gloves. She had to make sure the rubber was solid all the way around or she could risk ruining the gloves, and badly hurting her hands. Killua took to training- push-ups and sit-ups. They both worked in silence, for the most part, and his level of dedication to his training really impressed Aliara. She could remember times where she'd slacked off at home, just to piss her mother off, but Killua took it seriously.

"Take a break, will you?" she called after her got through a thousand push-ups for a third time. "You're making me tired."

"How does that make sense?" Killua complained. Nevertheless, he hopped up to his feet, looking completely fine for someone who had been doing push-ups nonstop for the last ten minutes. Smiling, Aliara turned back to her gloves, sliding them on and letting her palms burst into flame. She couldn't feel anything. Good.

"Hey, Ali."

Aliara jerked her head up. Killua was standing by the window in their room, with the curtain drawn back. He beckoned to her, so she took her gloves off and put her tools in her bag before walking over to join Killua.

He pointed. She looked outside at the sky. "Wow," she breathed. There wasn't a cloud in the sky, and the stars were shining brightly. "It's gorgeous."

Killua seemed to stare at her for a few moments longer than necessary before he said, "you wanna go to the roof?"

"Yes," she said immediately, pushing the window open and pushing herself out. Killua smirked and followed her out, and soon the two of them were scaling the side of the wall easily. The building wasn't very tall, so they made it up in a flash.

The white-haired boy flopped back on the roof, staring up at the sky and tucking his hands behind his head. "This is nice."

Aliara wanted to agree, but the words were stuck in her throat, so she just nodded and lay down next to him. This reminded her of the time she, Gon, and Killua had adventured into the forest on Whale Island and stayed up all night telling stories, sharing secrets, and just enjoying each other's company.

Killua seemed to think the same thing because he laughed, "this reminds me of when we were on Whale Island."

The dark-haired girl smiled. "Yeah. Except this time, Gon's not here."

She missed him. She missed his bright smile, his happy-go-lucky personality and his optimism. But she'd see him soon, and for now, she should enjoy the time she had with Killua. They had plenty of time.

"You think he's doing okay?" Killua said, his gaze never leaving the sky.

Aliara watched a tiny red dot flash across the sky. Probably a plane. "Of course," she said with a grin. "He's got Bisky with him. I miss him though."

"Me too," he agreed. "We'll see him soon."

"Yeah."

She liked Killua. A lot. And judging by the hugs and cheek-kisses they'd shared, she was pretty sure he felt the same. Of course, she wouldn't be sure unless he flat out said it. Maybe he'd changed his mind. Maybe he was actually really bored, sitting up here and talking to her.

Aliara laughed, memories springing into her head. "I remember saying that I was supposed to get married, and you guys freaked out."

"Yeah," he said with a grin. "I can't believe you dropped a bomb like that on us."

"I didn't think it'd be that much of a shock," she admitted, smiling wryly. "Some of my older siblings are already married off. Kuro's married to this girl I met once, who's about four years younger than him. He just got married when I ran away, but he's still going to stay with us until he's 22. Then he'll move out and live with her."

"That's crazy," Killua said slowly. "You're so young."

"Yeah," she agreed. "The girls get married off a lot younger though. Iyami's been married for three years, which is kind of scary. I don't even know who it's with, just that it's another check in my mother's list of places to slowly take over."

"So who were you supposed to get married to?"

Aliara paused. "To be completely honest, I forget."

Killua laughed.

"I'm serious!" she insisted with a grin. "He was a year or so older than me, so we'd be officially married, but I wouldn't have to live with him for a while. And... I can't remember his name. But he seemed like a bit of a wimp."

"Not your type?"

"Definitely not," Aliara agreed.

"So," Killua said, almost sounding nervous, "what is your type, then?"

"Well," she mused, pretending to think it over. This was it, this was her chance. "Well, I don't like wimps, I know that much. Someone who is strong and capable and loyal, I guess. But at the same time, he should probably be able to understand that I'm strong too, you know? And he should probably be funny. I like humor."

"Really," he said absently, tilting his head and smirking at her.

"How about you," Aliara suggested, grinning at him.

Killua huffed. "Well, I don't know."

"Oh, come on," she said with a laugh. "I told you!"

"Fine," he agreed, tilting his head up to the sky. "I think I'd want someone strong. I don't want to be looking after her the entire time. I mean, I'm not asking her to be invincible, and I don't mind being depended on. I'd definitely help her if she needed it. And I think I'd want her to be passionate, funny, and smart. You know, have some interests and not be afraid to talk to me."

"You're getting oddly specific," she said boldly, not daring to look at him.

"So how about you specify then?" Killua said without hesitating, grinning.

Aliara rolled her eyes. "Revenge, hmm?" He hummed in confirmation. "Fine. He should be able to have fun, willing to tease me or his friends. And he definitely needs to be smart, I don't think I could handle a stupid guy."

Killua laughed. "Really?"

"Obviously," she scoffed, smiling. "When you have five brothers, your expectations can be a bit weird."

"I bet," he agreed. "I've got a few sisters too, so I think I can understand."

They sat in silence for a minute. Aliara watched the stars, admiring them. She loved stars. Almost unconsciously, she let her hand drift down and felt it come in contact with Killua's hand. He gently took her hand, and she held on tight, warmth flooding through her body.

He was talking about her after all.

"So," she said abruptly, "what did Gon whisper into your ear before you left?"

Killua coughed, stiffening, and she squeezed his hand, laughing. "You didn't forget?" he said with exasperation. "Darn."

"What is it?" Aliara asked again.

He exhaled slowly, and she tilted her head, studying his face. God, he was pretty. "Well, Gon and I made a bet."

"A bet," she repeated.

He nodded. "Remember back when we were trying to raise money for Greed Island?" Aliara nodded. "Well, Gon ended up earning more than I did. And the agreement was that the loser had to do any one thing the winner said."

Killua paused, fighting for the words to say. Aliara piped up, "what did he make you do?"

"I haven't done it yet," he said with a shake of his head. "I was... I, well... I was supposed to tell you how I felt about you."

Aliara felt her cheeks flame, but sensing that Killua wasn't done, she kept her mouth shut.

"I mean, I thought I'd made it pretty obvious," he said quickly. Aliara noticed the blush that was occupying his cheeks. "But I never really... well, told you anything, as Gon pointed out."

"You've been giving Gon updates?" Aliara said with a laugh.

Killua chuckled. "Yeah. He kept egging me on."

Aliara couldn't believe it. Well... never mind, she could. "It's the same thing on my end," she giggled.

"You're kidding," he said with disbelief.

There was a pause, and then they both burst into laughter. Of course Gon would do something like that. Aliara should've known he'd be relaying everything to Killua and then giving her hints on what she should do next.

"Wow, Gon," Aliara breathed, grinning up at the night sky.

"He's crazy," Killua remarked.

There was a pause.

"So?" Aliara prompted.

"So what?" Killua scoffed, blushing.

She couldn't help but grin. "You haven't held up your end of the bet yet."

"But- You- But you..." he trailed off, and Aliara was enjoying the dark red that was occupying Killua's face. Even in the dark, the dim light from the streets was enough to see. She squeezed his hand again, and he squeezed back. "Well, you know, don't you?"

"No," Aliara said breezily, twisting her head and grinning at him. She propped herself up on her elbows, still clutching his hand. "I'm completely oblivious."

Killua huffed in frustration, propping himself up on his elbows too. He frowned at her. "I hate you."

"No, you don't," Aliara sang with a smile.

Killua couldn't help but smile. He loved her smile. "No, I don't," he agreed, shifting himself slightly.

The black-haired girl bit her lip. "So?"

He gathered what little courage he could muster and turned to her, managing a small smile. "Well, I think I like you."

"You think?" she scoffed, rolling her eyes. "Ouch." Internally, Aliara wanted to die. They were still holding hands, and here was the boy of her dreams, confessing that he liked her on the rooftop, gazing at the stars. He likes me. He actually does.

"Okay," he breathed. The space between them was gradually getting smaller. "I like you."

"Thank god," Aliara said with a bit of a laugh.

"What?"

"I like you too," she blurted out, feeling the weight fly off her shoulders upon the confession.

Killua almost sighed in relief, but he composed himself enough to say, "well, at least it's not one sided."

Aliara shrugged, face flushed. "What can I say? It was kind of hard not to." Killua quirked his eyebrows, but Aliara forged on. "I mean, you're one of the strongest people I know, and even though there's a new horror every week with my wonderful life, you just..." she threw her other hand in the air dramatically. "You're always there. No matter what. And you don't constantly judge me."

The red on her cheeks was evident, Killua saw that much. He squeezed her hand, because he knew that it wasn't easy to say stuff like this all the time. "Same to you," he said quietly, watching her eyes widen. "You're crazy strong. I mean, it's kind of scary sometimes. And you... even when you first realized who I was, you didn't freak out or judge me."

"I hid the bodies in the supply closet," Aliara realized.

Killua nodded. "Yeah. And you're always getting yourself into trouble, so you're a pain, honestly-" At this, Aliara punched him in the arm with her free hand- "Oi, that hurt. Anyways. And you... You always get this smile on your face and this look in your eyes when you're building something or talking about what you've built. It's like this sparkle."

"Sparkle," she repeated.

"Well, maybe not sparkle," he admitted sheepishly. "But... You know."

Aliara shifted slightly, and now they were really close. Almost shoulder to shoulder. "Whenever we go out," she said quietly, causing him to look at her, "like for ice cream or food or training or anything, you always get this smile. Like when you're genuinely enjoying yourself. And it makes me happy to know that... that you find that happiness with us."

Killua smiled softly. "You're really good at this. The whole 'saying your feelings' thing."

"Yeah, you suck."

"Hey!"

"It took you, what, six months?"

"Five!"

They turned to each other and grinned, close enough so their noses were almost touching. Killua seemed to think for a second, studying her intently. She stared back, trying to identify the different emotions fluttering through his face.

He leaned in, and his lips met her cheek. His lips were warm.

Aliara nearly froze up, remembering when he had done the same thing a month ago.

Killua pulled back with a soft smile on his face. "Thanks. For-"

"No," she said firmly, shaking her head. "Not this time."

"What?!"

Aliara leaned in and pressed her mouth against Killua's and let the rest of the world fade away. She had her eyes squeezed shut, mostly of nerves more than anything, and almost sighed in relief when he responded, moving his lips slowly against hers.

It felt like an eternity before they pulled away.

"Jerk," he huffed, smirking at her.

"Moron," she countered softly, punching him lightly in the arm.

They eventually climbed back to their room, holding hands most of the way, smiling at each other the entire time. They hugged before they separated to go to their own beds (Killua kissed her on the cheek and Aliara almost melted) and the black-haired girl fell asleep grinning.


RedBurningDragon: For sure. Thanks for your review! :)

The Otaku Lady Priya: I hope this was satisfactory ;) Thank you so much for your review, I love hearing from you! :D

xenocanaan: Now you know ;) Thank you so much for your review! :D

Night Owl: I love Gon so much. I agree. Thank you so much! :)

Oof: I'm so happy you're enjoying it! Yes, I'm trying to keep this ongoing, because I see too many good fanfics nowadays that aren't. As for names? That was probably the hardest part about starting the story, not going to lie. It was so difficult. I recommend trying different websites, searching up names, finding translations. It helps. Thank you for your review! :D

robertastarcris11: ME TOO ME TOO XD Thank you so much! :D

Keep Calm and Be Ninja: I hope you liked this chapter, then ;) Thank you so much for your review! I too am looking forward to their exam. Thank you! :) :)

IceMagic896: Thank you! I'm so glad you think so, when I started I wasn't sure if was going to be cliche or not. Thank you for your review! :D

PinkSpace: I agree! Thank you so much! :)

Yozora531: So true. Thank you so much for your review! :D

At Night We Rise: Thank you! Thank you so much! :D

havanatitiana: Aaaah! I'm so happy you enjoyed, thank you so much! :)

I HOPE YOU ALL ENJOYED READING THIS AS MUCH AS I DID WRITING IT!