Disclaimer: I do not own anything related to 'Love Live!'

Kotori was slumped over her desk in the classroom that was empty except for her, holding a half-eaten Pocky stick between her lips.

She had told Honoka and Umi to go home without her, as she wanted to concentrate on designing the costume for their next Live.

With that said…

Kotori chewed the remainder of the stick, then sighed heavily, depressed that no ideas were coming to her.

She reached for another stick, then held it between her lips as she started to think again.

The first step of designing costumes for her was envisioning her ginger-headed childhood friend, then trying to imagine what would look cute on her.

"Honoka-chan…" Kotori whispered, then closed her eyes to try to get a better idea.

Maybe something with a lot of frills? Or possibly something more revealing?

As images of Honoka performing various poses and wearing different clothes flashed by in Kotori's thoughts, she blushed faintly.

'I can't think of anything…' she thought to herself dejectedly, then opened her eyes.

When she did, she saw the figure of Honoka standing in front of her, giving her a happy look.

"Now I'm even seeing Honoka-chan…" Kotori murmured, then slowly reached out her hand, but froze when she actually felt something there.

Was it really…

"H-Honoka-chan!?" Kotori shouted with embarrassment and leaned back in her chair in surprise.

Ah.

Too far.

A loud thud resounded in the classroom as Kotori fell to the ground in her chair.

"Kotori-chan?!" Honoka exclaimed in surprise as she quickly ran over.

Kotori gently rubbed the back of her head as she sat up.

"Ow…" Kotori murmured, then froze again as she was suddenly enveloped in warmth.

Honoka held Kotori tightly, then gently ran a hand through her hair as she breathed a sigh of relief.

"I'm glad you're okay…"

Kotori smiled happily as she looked up from Honoka's shoulder, but then her eyes widened.

She blushed deeply when she saw how close Honoka's face was to hers.

"H-H-Honoka-chan, you're…" Kotori stumbled on her words as her eyes practically started spinning.

Honoka tilted her head slightly with confusion when she saw Kotori's expression and red face.

"Hm? Do you have a fever?" Honoka asked worriedly, then leaned closer and pressed her forehead to Kotori's.

Kotori closed her eyes due to embarrassment.

'That's not how you do it, Honoka-chan…' she lightheartedly complained in her thoughts, then slowly opened her eyes again, then stared at her, captivated.

Honoka looked so pretty…

Without thinking, Kotori moved very slightly toward Honoka's lips.

Just a little more…

Kotori closed her eyes again as she got closer, but then stopped, confused when she didn't feel anything.

When she opened her eyes again, Honoka was further away, smiling brightly at her.

"It doesn't seem like you have a fever. That's great!" she said sincerely.

Kotori looked at Honoka for a few moments, then put on a small smile.

She felt a bit guilty about almost doing that to Honoka when Honoka was seriously worried about her, so she decided to change the subject.

"What are you doing here, Honoka-chan? I thought you walked home with Umi-chan," Kotori recalled simply.

Honoka stopped hugging Kotori, then put her hands in her own lap as Kotori asked the question.

"Well, it didn't feel right leaving you here to work by yourself, so I just came back! I was going to let you focus, but then it looked like you were sleeping, so…" Honoka trailed off as she gently scratched her own cheek nervously.

Kotori was happy, but ended up waving her hands in front of her, trying to say that it wasn't a big deal.

"You don't have to do all that…" she murmured, but then Honoka tilted her again.

"Hm? Why not?" Honoka asked curiously.

Kotori put a finger to her own chin, confused.

"Wouldn't you rather walk home with Umi-chan?" Kotori asked, thinking that it must have been boring just watching someone try to draw.

Honoka shook her head quickly, then gently grabbed Kotori's hands in hers.

"Being with Umi-chan is fun, but I also love Kotori-chan!" she announced happily with a smile.

Kotori's whole face turned red, but then she realized that Honoka's 'love' most likely didn't mean the same as her own definition.

Kotori quickly reached her arms out and hugged Honoka.

"I love you too, Honoka-chan!" she confessed energetically, and Honoka hugged her back.

…

"Here, Kotori-chan," Honoka said quietly as she held out a Pocky stick toward Kotori's face.

After their hug, they picked the chair up, and Honoka brought a chair to the opposite side of the desk as she watched Kotori draw.

Kotori parted her lips as instructed and waited.

Honoka brought the stick close to Kotori's lips, then realized that she was getting hungry as well.

Kotori widened her eyes in surprise as Honoka held one end of the stick between her lips, then brought the other end to Kotori's.

Kotori blushed, but quickly accepted the other end.

Kotori tried to bring her attention back to the paper, but then realized something.

There was no way to draw like this.

The two stared at each other for a moment, then Honoka started eating absentmindedly.

Kotori tried her hardest to pretend that she was drawing, but she fidgeted in her seat as Honoka's lips came closer to hers.

Kotori slowly worked on her end of the stick, and before she knew it, they were almost there.

Just a bit more…

Their lips brushed against each other, then Honoka broke the stick as she quickly stood up and started yelling in panic.

"Ahh! I forgot! I have to help out at the store today!" Honoka exclaimed, then immediately grabbed her bag and walked toward the door of the classroom.

"Sorry Kotori-chan! I'll help you tomorrow too, so don't worry!" she assured her, then left the classroom as an image of an angry Yukiho popped into her head.

As Honoka's steps echoed throughout the hallway, Kotori held her hands to her mouth as she could feel her body start to become hotter.

Was that actually…? Did they really…?

Kotori was in shock for a few more moments, but then giggled happily and quickly gathered her belongings.

"Wait for me, Honoka-chan!" she shouted energetically as she ran out of the classroom after Honoka.

Side Notes:

This is a HonoHarem series with various one-shots. Harem involves the entirety of µ's + A-RISE.

I hope you enjoy!