As the sun rose in the early morning, a certain pair of eyelids groggily went open.
Those eyes belonged to none other than Takemichi Hanagaki, as he started to awake from his previous slumber.
The teen let out a yawn as he had finally woken up from his sleep.
"Morning already...?" He asked himself in a low voice, the effects of sleep being evident in his voice.
He was about to get up when he realized that there was something on top of him.
"Eh?" He uttered with squinted eyes, "What is this weight I'm feeling...?" He asked with a bit confusion.
Although, that weight kinda felt like it was... a body... a human body...
And was that an arm and a head he felt on his chest? Why was his arm also wrapped around this figure?
Suddenly, his eyes slowly widened as he came to a surprising realization.
'Wait a minute...'
He hesitantly brought his head down to see what exactly was on keeping him down, and he felt his face turn white in absolute shock.
'E-EMMA!?' He shouted mentally in disbelief.
Indeed, the person lying on top of him was his female friend, Emma Sano.
Her head, along with her arm, was resting on his chest, and she let out quiet snores, revealing that she was still sleeping.
Takemichi's face was now bright red and he stared at the scene with a bewildered expression.
'W-W-What the hell!' He stuttered mentally, 'W-Why the hell is Emma on top of me!? And w-why is my arm wrapped around her!?' He asked loudly in his head, greatly shocked by his predicament.
'AND WHY THE HECK ARE WE CUDDLING!?" He shouted in his head, 'I mean... it's not likeIdon't like it... i-it actually feels pretty ni- NO! Don't think like that you perv!' He mentally berated himself.
He definitely shouldn't be thinking about how nice it feels to be cuddling with his friend... his female friend... his cute and pretty female frie-
'STOP!' He shouted at himself with a furious blush.
Despite his embarrassment, he couldn't help but take a look at her sleeping face, which looked peaceful.
He cracked a fond smile as he looked at her, "She does look cute when she's sleeping though..." He commented.
His attention then turned towards his black-screened TV, and he suddenly remembered why they fell asleep.
'Oh yeah! We were doing our movie night!' He remembered, 'I must have fallen asleep while we were watching the last movie... andthenshe followed suit...' He mentally came to the conclusion.
He had to admit, even though he was pretty annoyed at having to sit through 3 Rom-Coms, he did kinda like the last one. Maybe he could buy it himself so he could see the ending...
He looked at the alarm clock on his desk which read, "6:10AM"
"Wow. We really slept for that long?" He asked in surprise, "Well, I better get start getting ready."
However, he remembered that Emma was still on top of him, and it was then that he realized that she had slept over at his house the entire night, meaning she hadn't returned to her house.
'Her grandpa and Mikey must be worried about her...' He thought to himself, 'I guess I'lladdress it when she wakes up...' He concluded.
Deciding to get up, he carefully removed himself from Emma, making sure not to wake her up in the process.
With a nervous blush, he carefully lifted her up bridal style and brought her to his bed, gently laying her down and setting her head on the pillows.
He grabbed the blanket from the floor and covered her with it, her body unconsciously snuggling up in response.
Satisfied with his efforts, he decided to head into his bathroom to freshen up for the day.
A soft yawn was let out in the room as Emma Sano finally awoke from her sleep.
She sat up and stretched for a bit before the sleep fully left her eyes. She noticed her current position on the bed and raised an eyebrow.
"That's weird. How did I end up here?" The girl questioned with a bit of confusion. "Wasn't I on the floor with-?"
She didn't finish her sentence as last night's events came back to her, and she remembered that she and Takemichi had fallen asleep together.
"Oh my..." She uttered nervously, "I actually fell asleep with Takemichi..." She stated with a nervous blush.
Her blush suddenly got a bit bigger when she came to a surprising conclusion.
"Crap! That means he must've woken up and saw me sleeping on him!" She stated with embarrassment. "*Groan* This is so embarrassing..." She whined, putting her face in her hands.
'Although... it did feel pretty nice...' She thought to herself, 'He felt pretty comfortable to sleep next too...'
Now that she thought of it, sleeping with Takemichi wasn't really that bad. I mean, sure, he did fall asleep on her shoulder with her resting her head on his, but it wasn't too bad, right? Plus, they're not even dating. It's not like she was lying on him and cuddling with him or anything.
She briefly calmed down and a smile came to her face as she thought about her male friend once again.
Even though all they did was watch movies yesterday, she still enjoyed it, both the movies, and spending time with Takemichi.
Matter of fact, it seemed like everytime Emma was with him, his presence alone made her happy. Just having him by her side was enough to brighten up her day.
She unknowingly let out a dreamy sigh as she thought about him.
'He's such a cutie...' She stated mentally with a smile.
However, she snapped out of her admiration when she noticed that her blonde friend was nowhere to be seen.
She looked around in confusion, wondering where exactly he could've disappeared to in his own apartment.
"Where the heck is he?" She asked herself in wonder.
She got up from the bed to scan the apartment once again and eyes landed on a certain room.
"That must be his bathroom." She commented, "He definitely must be in there." She logically concluded, knowing he was probably getting ready for the day.
Still, Emma wanted to see him again this morning and check if he was fine, so, she went towards his bathroom door and stood right in front of it.
She couldn't just open it right away or barge in, there's no telling what exactly he could be doing in there. So obviously, she had to knock first.
'Okay. I'mjust gonna greet him and see if he's alright. No big deal.' She stated mentally, 'Maybe then I can even ask him if we can go out again today.' She thought with a hopeful smile, raising her hand.
Although, just before she could give the door a knock, it swiftly opened right in front of her, and out came Takemichi, startling her. However, her expression suddenly went from startled to shocked.
"Ah man!" He stated exasperatedly, "I forgot to bring my clothes with m-"
He didn't finish his sentence as he came face to face with a certain girl, and they slowly went wide when he realized it was a now-awake, and a bewildered Emma.
Why were the two of them so surprised, you may ask? Well, allow me to explain.
You see, the reason Emma was surprised was not because Takemichi came out so unexpectedly. No, the real reason was because he had come out wearing only a towel... around his waist... nothing else... which left his bare upper body for Emma's eyes to bear witness, and her eyes went even wider as she immediately noticed his stomach.
Takemichi may not look like he's a muscular guy, but if you were to remove his shirt, you'd see that he was hiding some seriously toned abs! Yes, he had a freakin' six pack! The cute-faced Takemichi actually had abs that stood out amongst his body.
The sight of his abdominals made Emma's eyes fly open, and she had gained a noticeably wide blush on her face.
Takemichi, on the other hand, was shocked because:
A: He wasn't expecting to see Emma standing right outside of the door as soon as he opened it.
And B: He realized that he was standing in front of her with nothing but his towel on, leaving his top half exposed to her, making his eyes widen and an embarrassed blush cover his face.
The two stood frozen in place for a few seconds, their faces purely red from the situation.
"Uh... M-Morning... T-Takemichi..." She broke the silence by nervously greeting her half-naked friend.
"Erh... H-Hi, E-Emma..." He greeted back in an equally nervous voice, "Glad to see y-you're awake..."
"Y-Yeah..." She agreed, still shook.
They stayed silent for a bit before Takemichi shyly spoke up.
"Umm... D-Do you mind... L-Letting me through...?" He shakily requested, "I-I kinda need to take... m-my clothes..." He slowly pointed towards his closet.
She looked towards the direction he was pointing at. "O-Oh! Yeah! S-Sure...!" She louder than normally obliged, stepping out of his way to let him pass.
"T-Thanks..." He thanked her sheepishly as he walked past her.
She watched as he silently removed his desired clothes from his closet and walked past her once again, heading back into the bathroom.
Once he closed the door behind him, Emma's blush deepened once again and brought her hands to her face.
'GAAAH! W-WHAT THE HELL?!' She shouted in her mind, 'I-I JUST SAW TAKEMICHI WITHOUT A SHIRT ON!'
'AND HE'S... H-HOT!' She stated mentally in disbelief.
She rapidly fanned her flushed face as she desperately tried, but ultimately failed, to get the image of Takemichi's half-naked figure out of her head.
'H-How could a cutie like him be hiding those abs underneath?!' She asked herself, still having trouble believing it.
Though he may not be too muscular or strong, Takemichi's body was still pretty lean and toned, and his abs were definitely cut.
It also didn't help Emma's mind that he had just left the shower too, his abdominals glistened by the water running down them, making the glorious sight even more enticin-
'NO! Bad Emma!' She shouted at herself, smacking her head, 'No naughty thoughtsabout Takemichi!' She berated herself, embarrassed by what she thinking.
She shouldn't be having those kind of thoughts about him, no matter how good he looked! He's her friend for Christ's sake!
However, that brought her back to a certain thought she had last night when the two of them fell asleep.
'Oh... that...' She remembered, her blush dying down, but still a bit present.
The blonde girl recalled the questioned she asked herself that night, and started pacing around the room as she pondered over it.
'These past few days... I've just been having these strange thoughts about him...' She recollected, 'Whether in the morning, or whether I'mabout to sleep, his face always comes to my mind...'
She stopped and took a seat on the bed, looking down at her lap.
'Last night, when I went to sleep, all I could think about was him...' She mentally revealed.
'His cute face...'
'His cute smile...'
'His cute laugh...'
'And his caring nature...' She thought all of that with a fond smile on her face.
'I hope I get to be with him forever, so I can always get to see those features...' She thought hopefully.
However, that thought made her blink in surprise and her cheeks turned pink, making her bring a hand to her forehead.
'Oh gosh... Do Iactually like Takemichi...?' She asked herself the big question on her mind once again.
That last thought was just one of the few she's been having about her male friend for the past few days.
Ever since her first meeting with Takemichi, along with the first time they hung out, Emma had taken a big liking to him. Though the more they spent time together, the more that liking had grown.
Being with him just... filled her with a certain feeling of warmth. He radiated such a positive energy that made her want to be close with him. Maybe even closer...
These thoughts were similar to the ones she had back about Draken back when she still liked him, although, it seemed like these ones were even... stronger...
'But... if I really did like him...' She suddenly thought, 'I-It might complicate out relationship...' She figured with a sort of sad expression.
Though the idea of her having a crush on Takemichi made sense, a part of it couldn't help but feel like it wasn't exactly a good thing.
Mainly because she was simply afraid. Afraid that her having a crush on him could possibly ruin their friendship, something that she cherished too much to lose.
It also didn't help that the last time she had a crush on somebody, it practically went up in flames and ended on a horrible note, and she couldn't help but have a bit of fear of that happening with her and her blonde companion.
What if he didn't like her back?
What if he found the idea of her having feelings for him weird?
What if he found her weird and left her?
What if she never got to see him again?
She's enjoyed all the time she's spent with him, and she didn't want to lose that forever. He's too much of a gem.
'No... Ican't lose him...' She thought with a serious look, clenching her fists on her lap, 'I like him too much for that...'
Her last statement though, quickly shifted her serious expression into a surprised one, making her blush.
'W-Wait... L-Like?!' She sheepishly repeated mentally.
Before she could continue her inner debate, she heard the sound of the bathroom door opening once again, making her ears perk up.
She looked at towards it, and out came Takemichi once again, though this time, fully clothed, donning a simple T-Shirt with khaki shorts. His hair was also in its faux hawk style.
"Oh, you're... finally dressed, huh?" She asked, looking at him.
"Y-Yeah..." He confirmed her question, "I-I just finished up earlier..." He added, averting his gaze from her due to still being a bit embarrassed by the scenario from earlier.
"Hmm, I see..." She commented, although with a tad bit of disappointment, her teenage brain unable to help being disappointed by his now clothed upper body.
The room was filled with a bit of an awkward silence before Takemichi broke it.
"S-Sorry you had to see that by the way..." The blonde sheepishly apologized, scratching his head.
Emma blinked in surprise at his sudden apology.
"Oh! N-No no, don't worry about that!" She frantically waved him off, "You had no idea of knowing if I was behind the door or not, so it's all good..." She assured him, pushing back her nerves and giving him an assuring smile.
Her statement immediately gave him comfort, and allowed him to calm down from his worry.
"Phew...!" He let out, relieved that she was cool about the situation, "Glad to see that you're cool about this." He told her with a relieved smile.
"Of course dude. It's not that big of a deal." She stated with a tiny wave, "Accidents happen all the time, and it's not like I really saw too much." She said, using her fingers to motion quotation marks, putting emphasis on too.
Before Takemichi could agree with her though, she interrupted him.
"Plus..." She uttered out, her lips slowly forming a smirk and her eyes facing the floor.
"I think we both know that you've also seen me in... a lot less, amirite?" She asked with a smug tone, winking at her friend.
Her gesture, along with her comment, made him blush from embarrassment since he knew exactly what she was referring to.
"So basically, we've practically seen each other in almost nothing. A fair trade, don't ya think?" She questioned the blushing teen with a smirk.
"W-Well..." Takemichi started, still blushing, "When you put it that way... I-I guess it makes sense..." He agreed with an awkward chuckle, sheepishly scratching his head.
"Also..." Emma started before she let out a wolf whistle, "Who knew that you actually looked pretty hot underneath, Takemichi?" She said in a teasing manner, obviously trying to get a reaction from him.
Of course, it worked, evident by his face getting redder, along with him averting his gaze.
Did she just call him hot...?
"I mean, seriously!" She exclaimed, throwing up her hands in a dramatic manner, "If I didn't know who you were and saw you without a shirt, I would've assumed that you were the #1 target of every girl in your school!" She told him, making him bury his hands into his face out of embarrassment.
She was amused to see that her teasing was working, and decided to go even further.
"And I wouldn't blame them if that were the case. Hell, I probably would've pined for you too!" She said outloud, "I mean, a cute face, and a smokin' hot body? Always a good combination..." She joked with a smug look.
"S-Stop that, Emma!" The boy suddenly whined, still covering his face in embarrassment, "I-It's embarrassing!" He complained into his hands.
His reaction to her teasing made Emma playfully let out a laugh. Teasing Takemichi was fun for her, because seeing him turn bashful in response was always worth it, plus, it made him look cuter too.
However, Takemichi wasn't really on the same page, and found her laughter not too pleasant.
"Hmph!" He let out, crossing his arms and giving a pout, "Meanie..." He called his friend, looking away from her in annoyance.
She simply giggled at his action, used to this reaction.
"C'mon, you know I'm just messing with ya..." She told him with a playful smile. She then gave him her notorious puppy dog eyes, "Could you really stay mad at me, Takemichi...?" She asked in a sweet tone.
Her face made him stare at her with wavering irritation, his annoyance slowly crumbling.
No matter how much he wanted to be annoyed with her, those eyes were just too damn powerful! He could never resist!
He eventually couldn't do it anymore and gave up.
"*Sigh* Fiiine..." The blonde finally gave in, "I guess it's nothing too serious to be mad about." He relaxed his expression, forgiving Emma for her teasing.
His response made her smile.
"Good." She responded happily, satisfied by his forgiveness.
"But for real though, you do look good, Takemichi." She genuinely complimented her friend, "I never expected you as the type to have a toned abs. Do you secretly work out?" She questioned him with interest, raising an eyebrow.
"Well... sorta..." He responded, sheepishly scratching his head, "Usually I just do a bunch of crunches every morning and when I'm about to sleep." He revealed.
"Really?" She asked with raised eyebrows, "Don't ya get cramps from that sort of thing?" She questioned with curiosity.
"Nah, not really. I guess I've just never done them to that extent." He answered truthfully.
"Well even then, it's definitely paid off." She told him with a playful smirk, "So nice work dude." She complimented him, giving him the 'ok' hand gesture.
Though he was a bit flustered by her commenting on his figure, he was still able to find it in him to smile at her, showing that he appreciated her compliment.
"Thanks, Emma." He smiled at her, "I appreciate that."
She smiled right back at him, "It's no problem." She replied.
However, at that moment, Takemichi remembered something that hadn't really thought about.
"Ah crap!" He suddenly exclaimed, bringing his hands to his head in panic.
"Hm? What's wrong?" Emma asked her friend with a raised eyebrow, confused by his sudden outburst.
"You stayed over at my place up until morning! Which means your grandpa and Mikey are totally worried about you!" He responded worriedly, "They're probably searching for you right now as we speak!"
"Oh that?" She asked him in surprise, "Pfft! You don't have to worry about that, dude." She assured, waving off his concern.
"Eh?" He uttered, "W-Whaddya mean...?" He questioned with a confusion.
"When I agreed to come over for our movie night, I already knew it would probably take all night. So, I told my grandpa about it beforehand and he agreed." She revealed.
"Wait, really?" He asked, surprised by the information.
"Yup." She confirmed, "You remember those 2 bags I brought yesterday, right?" She asked him.
"Yeah." He answered, "One of them was even holding those movies you brought." He added.
"Mhm." She agreed, before she moved and took the other bag she brought, rummaging through it.
"Although..." She started, eventually finding what she was looking for, removing what looked like a toothbrush, "I also brought some of my stuff from home. Y'know, since I was basically sleeping over." She disclosed to him.
"Wow, you really planned this out, didn't you?" He asked her in a mixture of surprise and awe, to which he received a proud nod in return.
"Well, I guess I have nothing to worry about then." He said with relief, chuckling a bit.
"You got that right." She assured him with a wink.
The girl let out another yawn before grabbing her bag filled with her essentials.
"Alright, I better get up and start getting ready." She said, rising up from her seat on the bed, "I'm sure you're okay with me using your bathroom, right?" She asked her friend.
"Oh, of course!" He answered her, "I've got no problem with that." He assured her with a smile.
Satisfied by his assurance, she walked past him and went towards the bathroom.
However, she stopped right as she placed her hand on the doorknob.
"Oh, and Takemichi...?" She called out his name.
"Hm?" He responded.
"I know I'm stupid pretty, and I practically walked in on you half-naked." She started before looking back at him with a smug face and a smirk, "But that doesn't mean you get to take a peek at me~" She teased.
Her comment suddenly made Takemichi's face go entirely red.
"W-Wut?!" He blurted in sudden shock.
"No peeping~" She playfully warned him with a wink, booping his nose before heading into the bathroom.
As soon as she closed the door, he sorta freaked out.
"W-Wut do you mean!?" He shouted out with a furious blush, "I-I'd never do something like tha-!"
He was silenced when he heard the sound of giggling behind the door and he slowly realized that Emma was playing a joke on him yet AGAIN.
"Aaagh, dammit Emma!" He shouted with annoyance, raising his hands in frustration.
At that point he heard her fully laugh behind the door, which irritated the teen further.
'Jeez... How does she keep doing that...?' He asked himself with a small scowl, running his hand through his hair.
Of course he wouldn't purposefully walk in on her! He wasn't some kind of pervert!
There's no way he was gonna intentionally open that door just so he could take a peek at Emma!
Get a peek at her coming out of the shower...!
Wearing only a towel...
Seeing how it tightly wrapped around her curvy figu-
'H-HEY! CUT THAT OUT!' The blonde shouted inside his head, greatly flustered by the thoughts his brain was having.
'I-I can't think that way about Emma, that's just wrong! She's my friend!' He thought to himself with a blush, not noticing how the mention of the word 'friend' felt kinda wrong to him...
'I mean, we only like each other as friends... There's no way the two of us could ever be a couple...' He said mentally as he went to grab some water from the fridge.
'Right...?'
*RIIIING*
"Hm?" Emma heard the sound of her phone ringing, and removed it from her jacket pocket before pressing it to her ear.
"Hello?" She greeted.
"Hello, Emma?" An elderly voice called out.
"Ah, Grandpa!" She called, recognizing the sound of her grandpa's voice on the line, "What's up?" She asked.
"Oh, nothing at all, my dear granddaughter." Mr. Sano responded back with a cheerful tone, "I simply called to see how you're doing. Did your sleepover with your friend go well?" He asked her with curiosity.
"Oh yeah, it went great! I really enjoyed it!" She informed her grandfather with a grin.
He chuckled over the phone, "Well, I'm glad you were able to have fun. All I want is for you to be happy." He told her.
"Aww~ thanks Grandpa." She replied with affection.
"No need to thank me. All I want is the best for my granddaughter." He replied genuinely.
She smiled at his reply.
"Oh by the way, Emma, that reminds me..." He suddenly stated.
"Hm? What is it?" She asked with interest.
"If you don't mind, do you think you could bring your friend, Hanagaki, over sometime?" The old man requested.
"Takemichi?" She asked in a bit of surprise, "Uhm, sure, I don't think that'd be a problem." She agreed.
"Why exactly do you ask though?" She questioned her grandfather with curiosity.
"You see, I haven'ttoldyou this, but since yesterday, I've been thinking about having a one on one conversation with him." He revealed.
"Wait, seriously?" She asked, surprised by the information.
"Indeed." He confirmed, "I was hoping I could thank the boy responsible for bringing my daughter out of her dreadful mood."
"I see..." She uttered lowly, "Well, you don't have to worry grandpa, I'll make sure to let him come over soon." She assured him.
"Thank you dear." He thanked her, "You know, I've noticed that you seem to be very fond of that young man." He told her.
"You bet I am!" She confirmed without missing a beat, "And it's for good reason too. He's a really sweet and amazing guy. I'm sure that once you two meet, you're really gonna like him!" She told her grandfather with an enthusiastic tone.
He chuckled over the phone, "I'm sure I will, judging by how highly you speak of him." He told her, noting how happy Emma sounded whenever she talked about the boy.
"Well, I just called to see how you're doing. I'll let you attend to whatever you're doing now." Mr. Sano stated.
"Okay." Emma agreed, "I'll see you later at home, Grandpa. Love you~!" She responded with a smile.
"Hmhm. Love you too dear." He responded genuinely before he hung up.
With that, Emma put her phone back in her pocket, checked her hair one more time and put on her black beret before finally stepping out of Takemichi's apartment.
The blonde boy spotted her and let out a relieved sigh.
"Gee, took ya long enough." He said with a faux tired expression, "I almost thought it'd take forever before you showed up!" He exclaimed, slightly teasing her.
"Oh suck it up, ya big baby." She clapped back, "You know I have to take my time to make sure my beauty is on point~" She said with a twirl.
"Heh. Sure. Whatever you say, Emma." He chuckled in acceptance, "Well, judging by how you look, I can tell your efforts didn't go to waste." He complimented her.
"Thanks." She thanked with a smile, pleased by his compliment, "You don't like bad yourself too." She complimented back.
The two were wearing outfits pretty similar to what they wore during their first outing together. Although this time, Emma wore khaki shorts instead of the jean-type, and donned a beret. Takemichi also wore blue jeans instead of black.
"Well, what are we waiting for?" Emma suddenly asked, "Let's go!" She grinned.
"Finally, we're here!" Emma cheered happily, Takemichi right behind her.
"The Amusement Park!" She announced in excitement.
Truth be told, the two were standing right in front of the entrance to the town's Amusement Park.
Emma had brought up the idea while they were discussing where to hang out next earlier, and Takemichi agreed. Which is what lead to them standing here now.
"You're really excited about this, huh?" Takemichi asked with a smirk.
"Of course I am! I've always loved coming here as a kid!" She gushed with stars in her eyes, "And I've really wanted us to come here together for awhile!" She revealed truthfully with a grin.
Her male companion chuckled at her childlike excitement, "Well, in a way, I'm kinda glad you asked me here." He told her, "Especially since I've never really been to one of these places."
"Wait, what?!" Emma exclaimed, her eyes widened in complete surprise, "You've never been to an amusement park before?!" She asked him in disbelief.
"Yup, It's true." He answered with full honesty.
"... But... Why...?" The girl questioned, still in incredulity.
"I don't really know, to be honest." He responded, scratching his head, "I guess it's just something I never really got to experience as a kid..." He admitted.
Emma stared at him with great shock on her face, before her expression suddenly turned serious and she grabbed Takemichi by the hand.
"Huh?" The boy uttered, taken aback by the sudden action, only furthered when he felt himself being pulled into a walk. "E-Emma? What're you doi-?"
"Put a sock in it and follow me, Takemichi." She swiftly interrupted, still walking.
He was thrown off by the way she quickly silenced him.
"You and I are gonna head into this amusement park..." She said, "And I'm gonna take you through almost every attraction here!" She told him, no room left for argument.
"Eh?" He uttered in response.
"If you haven't been to an amusement park before..." She started before looking back at him, "Then I'm gonna make sure that your first time here'll be the most fun you've ever had!" She told with determination.
Her statement made his eyes widen in surprise.
She then gave him a grin, "So c'mon! Let's get going!"
Takemichi looked at her in awe, floored by her previous declaration.
Anybody else probably wouldn't have cared that much about his revelation, but Emma seemed very serious about wanting him to have fun during his first time at an amusement park.
And he couldn't lie, he was pretty touched by how much she cared about it.
He flashed a smile right back at her.
"Okay, Emma. I trust you." He told her truthfully, "Let's go!" He beamed.
The fact that he trusted her filled her with happiness, and it made her smile.
With that, the two finally ventured into the amusement park's entrance, ready to begin Takemichi's long hour of fun.
...
"H-Hooooo, this cotton candy is amaaazing~!" Takemichi gushed at the sugary treat in his hand with amazement.
Emma giggled at his expression, "I told you it was super tasty, didn't I?" She asked him with a smirk.
"Man, you really weren't kidding. I've never tasted any candy this sweet and fluffy in my life! " He responded before taking another bite out of it.
"Delish~!" He exclaimed in glee with a delighted grin, earning a laugh from Emma, who was amused by his reception towards the treat she bought him.
The two were now leaving the amusement park, having spent a few good hours there.
True to her word, Emma took Takemichi around various rides in the park, riding a lot of them together.
She remembered his uncertainty when they went to ride the rollercoaster, but she had somehow managed to convince him to go on.
And she'll never forget the horrified look he had on his face during the big drop down on the tracks.
When they finally got off, he looked like he had just seen a ghost, and she couldn't help but laugh at his state, much to his chagrin.
After that whole deal, they went on the ferris wheel, and he ended up finding that one a bit more enjoyable.
He especially liked the view whenever they were at the top, evident by how he stared out the window in awe, with Emma finding his reaction cute.
They went to a few more attractions after that, and Takemichi had to admit, the whole thing was actually pretty fun.
He remembered how Emma practically flipped out when he told her he never had cotton candy before, and she immediately found a stand before buying him some, not even letting him say a word.
And that's what lead to them walking on a path out of the park.
"So, how was your first time at an amusement park?" Emma suddenly asked, "Pretty fun, wasn't it?" She questioned with a smirk.
"Honestly speaking... That was probably the most fun I've ever had in years." Takemichi answered truthfully, "It felt like I was a little kid who got to experience the joy of life for the first time." He added with a fond smile.
His response filled Emma with pride, "See? I told you it was gonna be the most fun you've ever had, didn't I?" She asked with a proud grin, glad she was able to make his experience joyful.
"Yeah, but I never really had any doubt in the first place." He revealed with a chuckle, "I know you'd never lie to me." He told her.
"I had a lot of fun today. So thanks for bringing me here, Emma!" He told her with a bright smile.
She smiled back, "You're welcome, Takemichi."
"Heh, if I'm being honest, you being here with me was probably the highlight of this whole thing." He admitted.
Emma was definitely not expecting that comment, evident by her widened eyes and the small blush on her face.
"H-Huh?" She stuttered out in surprise.
"It was pretty cute seeing how much you cared about making sure I enjoyed this whole thing." He admitted with no embarrassment, "And I couldn't help but admire you for that." He revealed.
"I think today gave me even more proof of something." He said before he turned and gave her the brightest grin he could muster, "That you're an amazing girl, and I'm really glad whenever I get to spend time with you!"
Just from that statement alone, the shock on Emma's face increased greatly, evident by her blush getting even bigger and her slightly open mouth.
Takemichi just called her amazing... And not only that, but he claimed he was happy whenever he was around her...
He really thought that...?
Her expression became a bit more bashful, and she slightly turned her head so that her blush couldn't be seen.
'Damn him and his heartwarming adorableness...!' She mentally cursed, frustrated by how easily his kind nature flustered her. It also didn't help that his smile filled her with a great warmth.
"T-Thanks Takemichi..." She slightly stuttered, "You're an amazing guy to be around too..." She complimented back sheepishly.
He thanked her with a smile, and the two continued their walk, although, Emma was still thinking about what happened right now.
She had been able to get her mind off her certain... dilemma... for the past few hours, but Takemichi's heartfelt statement towards her only made her think about it again!
'Why am I feeling like this...?' She questioned herself mentally.
Just hearing him compliment her made her feel warm inside... and seeing his bright smile along with it made her face heat up even more.
These were getting very similar to the thoughts she had when she was crushing on Drake-
No... matter of fact, these feelings were even STRONGER than the ones she had for Draken, 'cuz even back when she liked him, he was never able to make her feel warm or blush this hard.
And yet, Takemichi was somehow able to fill her with an indescribable, but very pleasant, warmth, one that practically drew her towards him, made her want to be with him...
Wait... Be with him...?
Emma's eyes turned wide and she brought a hand to her head as she came to a shocking realization.
'... Fuck...' She exclaimed mentally, '... I-I really DO like him...!'
The girl had finally accepted the undeniable truth.
She was crushing BIG on her friend, Takemichi Hanagaki.
She blushed wildly at the new revelation, mainly because she was embarrassed.
'Crap crap crap... Why did this have to happen?' She asked herself frantically with panic, 'I can't be crushing on him right now... not when I'mjust getting over myprevious one!'
The thing is, Emma was worried about how this kind of thing could affect their relationship. She had a good thing going with him right now just as friends, and she was worried that something like this would mess it up.
Plus, she didn't want it to seem like she was basically just using Takemichi as a way to get over Draken...
However, she mentally let out a sigh of frustration, '...But Ican't help it... He's just so damn charming and adorable!'
"Is everything alright, Emma?" A voice called out.
Emma snapped out of her inner turmoil and turned to realize that Takemichi was looking right at her, with a sort of concerned expression.
"Oh, y-yeah, of course!" She let out sort of loudly in panic, "E-Everything's totally fine here!" She tried to assure with a nervous grin.
Takemichi seemed a bit skeptical at first, but he eventually shrugged, "Alright then." He complied with her answer and continued walking.
The girl let out a sigh of relief and also continued to walk as well.
They walked in silence for a bit, the sound of their shoes tapping the ground being the only thing audible.
However, Emma was still trying to sort out the turmoil going on in her head, and eventually, she came to a certain decision, one that embarrassed her, but also made her feel like it might bring her peace...
So, she steeled herself and gathered whatever courage she had to tell Takemichi what she wanted to say.
"Takemichi..." She called out, "I-"
"Wait...!"
She was cut off when her male companion suddenly came to a halt and raised his hand in front of her to stop her in place.
She blinked in a bit of confusion at the sudden action.
"Huh? What's the holdup...?" She questioned with a raised eyebrow.
"Hold on, Emma..." Takemichi said in a quiet tone, "S-Something's not right..."
"Whaddya mean...?" She asked, her confusion starting to grow, "What's wrong...?"
"I-I'm not sure..." He answered back with uncertainty, "B-But something's telling me that where we are right now isn't safe..." He informed with a wary voice.
His response surprised her a bit, "...W-Why do you say that...?" She questioned him, his attitude starting to make her a bit nervous.
"I-I don't know..." He answered with a cautious look before he suddenly grabbed her hand, "I-I think we need hurry up and get outta he-"
"Well, well, well, what do we have here?!" A certain voice shouted out from behind, alerting the two teens.
They turned around and both of their eyes slowly widened at what they saw.
Standing not too far away from them was a man who looked odd, but at the same time, pretty threatening.
He was wearing only a tattered singlet, along with baggy jeans paired with black shoes. He also had a buzzcut and was wearing a very... menacing... grin on his face, and had a cigarette in his mouth. Not to mention that he looked like he was taller than both of them, probably around 5'10 or 5'11.
But the man's appearance alone wasn't what shocked the two teens. No, it was the fact that he was standing there with four similarly dressed dudes right by his side, making them five in number! And they definitely didn't look friendly...
'Crap...' Takemichi cussed internally with a horrified look, 'T-This doesn't look good...!'
The front man of the group took a step forward and removed his cigarette before suddenly speaking.
"Well, well. Isn't this a sight to see?" The man said, "Two little brats who decided to take a lovely stroll down here, is that right?" He stated with a smirk.
The two teens didn't reply, as they were too frozen up to even muster up a response.
"Well, sorry to burst your bubble, kiddos..." He continued before crushing his cigarette and throwing it away, "But you chose the wrong time to play around, 'cuz my boys and I were looking for some fresh meat... and you two just so happened to catch our attention!" He shouted with a maniacal grin.
His statement sent a jolt through the two teens, and their fear started to steadily increase.
The thug then looked back at his group, "Whaddya say boys? Should we leave their pockets empty? Or should we beat 'em down just for the hell of it?" He questioned.
"I say we go for both, Mushi!" One of the crazed members shouted to the now-named thug.
"Eh, I would too..." Another one started, "Although... I'm more interested in having some fun with that fine-looking lady over there..." He shamelessly stated while rubbing his hands.
That statement made Takemichi's blood run cold, and he started to sweat.
Their responses made the leader, Mushi, laugh out loud, and he turned back to the frozen teens.
"Well brats, what's it gonna be...?" He asked them.
Takemichi was trying to assess the situation before him with a terrified gaze.
He could tell that the thugs weren't joking around, and if he didn't think of something soon, both he and Emma were going to be in some serious trouble...
'Shit... this isn't good...' He cursed mentally, 'Emma and I are by ourselves right now... and neither of us can defend ourselves against these guys...!' He thought with panic.
He then brought his gaze towards Emma, and he could tell just by the way she was shaking that she was just as scared as him, if not even greater.
He looked back at the thugs, 'T-There's no way I can take on these guys, let alone beat them...' The blonde thought before he turned his gaze back to his female friend, "But I can't let them come anywhere near Emma... I-I have to protect her somehow...!' He exclaimed mentally.
'I don't care what happens to me...' He thought with closed eyes before he opened them and tried to adopt a more serious expression, 'As long as Emma's safe, that's what matters...!' He stated with determination.
"Emma..." He suddenly called out, alerting the girl's attention.
"Y-Yeah...?" She responded nervously.
"Listen carefully..." He told her, not looking back, "I'm gonna go up and face those guys' leader, alone... " He responded quietly, not wanting the thugs to hear him.
His request however, made Emma's eyes widen in shock, "Huh...?" She uttered in a whisper, "You're actually gonna try and fight that guy...?" She questioned in disbelief.
"Yeah..." He whispered in confirmation.
"What...? Are you crazy?!" She whispered back loudly, "There'sno way in hell you could beat him, he'll kill you without mercy...!"
"I know that!" He whispered back, "But I'm only doing this so that they don't do anything to you...!" He revealed, surprising her, "As soon as we start, get as far away from here as you can and try to use your phoneto call for help..." He instructed her carefully.
Even though he was to putting up a brave front, Emma could tell that he was just trying to hide his fear since his hands were still shaking a bit, and it only made her more worried for him. She didn't want anything bad to happen to her friend.
"No... Takemichi, please..." She tried to plead with a worried tone, "Don't do-"
"Alright you punks..." Takemichi cut her off as he called out the thugs in front of him, "Listen up!"
The thugs in question simply waited to hear what he had to say.
"I don't care about whatever you wanna do to me..." He walked forward, looking them head on, "But whatever you do, don't do anything to her! Leave her out of this!" He demanded, motioning towards the girl behind him.
His request made the leader of group blink in a bit of surprise before he let out a loud laugh once again and looked back at his boys.
"Well, would ya look at that boys?" He asked, "Seems like blondie over here's tryin' to protect his little girlfriend over here, eh?" He stated, to which he received laughter in return.
"He's actin' all tough, but he's probably shakin' in his boots right now!" One of the thugs mocked, receiving laughter as well.
Mushi chuckled at the comment before he turned back to Takemichi, and started to slowly to power-march towards him.
The boy inaudibly gulped as the head thug walked in his direction.
He eventually stopped, and began to stare down the shorter teen, Takemichi's will almost crumbling on the spot at his gaze.
"So, you wanna protect little miss blondie over there, huh?" The taller man asked in a quiet voice.
*WHAM!*
Before Takemichi could even register the comment, he felt a great pain in his right cheek when out of nowhere, he was given a quick left hook by the taller thug.
He stumbled back a bit before he was grabbed by the collar and his face was brought closer to Mushi's.
"If you're willing to step up to us and make such big demands, then you might as well back it all up, don't ya think?!" The thug asked loudly with a crazed grin, before punching Takemichi right in the face, sending him to the floor.
Emma brought her hand to her mouth and gasped in horror at the sight.
Mushi pulled back and cracked his knuckles with a chuckle, "Sit this one out boys. I wanna have some fun myself." He commanded his posse before stepping back into action.
The blonde teen shakily got up and was barely able to register his surroundings before he was met with a hard punch to the gut and received an uppercut to the jaw that almost knocked the wind out of him.
"Ngh!" He grunted in pain as he stumbled back and held his aching jaw.
"Whew! Look at that! Three hard blows and he took em like a champ!" Mushi commented with a loud laugh.
He didn't waste any time and threw another haymaker at the blonde boy, getting right back into action.
The blonde let out a sound of pain, and received another punch to the face again and again.
'Damn, this guy sure hits hard!' He thought with a pained voice, his mind somehow still having the ability to think even while he's getting beat up, 'He's given me a few blows and I'malreadygetting shaken up! I don'tknow ifI can last long!'
Mushi continued to pummel the younger teen with a joyful grin on his face.
"WHAT'S WRONG?! YOU WANTED TO PROTECT YOUR LADY-FRIEND DIDN'T YOU?! SO WHY ARE YOU JUST LETTING ME BEAT YOU TO A PULP?!" He shouted with a mocking tone.
"Guess all that boldness from before was just a show, ha!" One of his friends mocked as they witnessed him get another hit in.
At this point, Takemichi's hair was all messed up, and blood was flowing from his nose.
He breathed heavily with his hands on his knees, desperately trying to hold on to any consciousness he had left.
Mushi blinked in a bit of surprise before he regained his crazed grin, "Well damn, all those hits and your somehow still standing..." He stated, sounding a bit impressed, "Gotta admit, you're sturdier than ya look, kid."
The panting blonde looked up at him.
"But I think we've played enough. It's about time we wrap this up, don't ya think?" The taller thug sadistically smirked, "Yo Hize, throw me my rod, will ya?" He commanded.
Said thug wasted no time in complying, throwing a metal rod right in Mushi's direction with him catching it easily.
With that, the now armed thug raised his weapon in the air, ready to strike down.
"Let's see how you do against this, KID!" He shouted before bringing his hand down.
The blonde teen screwed his eyes shut and braced himself for the incoming hit. Although...
"Stop it!"
"Hey, what the hell?!" He heard Mushi shout. "Get off, girly!"
Wait a minute... Girly...?
Oh no...
Takemichi slowly opened his eyes and was met with a sight he was not expecting at all.
"E-Emma...?" He said in confusion, and a bit of pain.
Indeed, the other figure he was seeing was his friend, Emma, the same girl he was trying to protect. She was holding onto Mushi's arm tightly as said man was struggling to get out of her hold.
"No! I won't let you keep hurting Takemichi!" She shouted back without fear as she struggled against the armed thug.
The taller thug grit his teeth in frustration as he tried to wrestle his arm out of the shorter girl's grip, and eventually, he had enough.
"I said..." He growled as he roughly freed himself from her hold, "Get..." He slowly raised his other hand.
And then...
"OFF!"
*SMACK!*
"AH!"
Takemichi eyes slowly shifted from barely open to full on bug-eyed at what he just saw.
Mushi, who had his hand raised high, had brought his open hand down and smacked Emma, right in the face, HARD... sending her flying back.
He watched in absolute horror and time seemed to move in slow motion as her body flew right past his eyes.
She roughly hit the floor and rolled across the ground before her body came to a stop, her beret also falling off her head.
She wasn't moving, she was just... lying there
"Emma..." Takemichi gasped her name quietly in disbelief at what just happened.
He thought that she had left and called for help while he was getting beat down, but apparently, she was standing there the whole time... and not only that, but she somehow managed to swallow her fear and run towards his bigger opponent to try and stop him...
Despite knowing what would happen, she still tried to help him... the same way he tried to help her...
And because of that, she was given a meaty smack by the same thug...
"Grrr, little bitch..." Mushi snarled at her slumped figure.
That thug... he hit her...
He hit Emma...
... and he just insulted her...
... That scumbag was willing to hurt a girl and look down on her...
And not just any girl... but his friend, Emma... his same friend who cares deeply for...
... THAT SON OF A BITCH...!
"Tch." Mushi scoffed, "At first I wasn't planning on killing both of these brats tonight... but it seems like someone's little whore just had to go and pi- UGH!"
Just before he could finish his derogatory remark, Mushi was interrupted when he suddenly felt a strong punch right to the gut, and as soon he hunched over in pain, a hard fist planted itself right into his cheek, swiftly knocking him down and instantly knocking the thug out before he could even think.
A loud silence filled the area for a bit, before everyone else in the knocked-out thug's crew had their jaws dropped in shock.
Some of them spluttered in shock, not even able to formulate words to express their disbelief, before one of them found the perfect words to describe it.
"W-WHAT THE FFFUCK?!" One of them shouted as they stared at the figure who somehow beat Mushi.
The figure standing above the slumped thug was the person responsible for his current state, that person being none other than the crybaby hero himself, Takemichi Hanagaki.
His eyes were shadowed by his hair as he gazed at the floor, but his fists were clenched tight.
The same teen, who was writhing in pain awhile ago, had somehow gotten up and punched the life out of the same guy who was wailing on him earlier.
"H-HUH?! H-How the hell did that pipsqueak manage to slump Mushi?!"
"Mushi was giving him the beating of a lifetime, but then he suddenly got laid out after hitting the kid's girl...!"
Because their leader had just been taken out, the group of five thugs was now reduced to four.
"... You low-life pieces of shit..." Takemichi suddenly uttered in an unusually low voice.
His comment alerted the attention of the thugs.
The teen fiercely planted his foot on Mushi's head, "I never thought that I'd ever get this angry, but nowI'mseriously pissed off..."
He moved down and took the metal rod Mushi had intended to hit him with earlier. "Listen up you bastards..."
"Take your leader over here as an example..." He slowly raised the rod in and pointed it right at them, "If any of you even thinkabout putting your filthy hands on Emma..."
The teen finally raised his head... and his eyes screamed absolute FURY.
"I'll kill you...!" He threatened in a low voice, staring right into each and every one of the thugs' souls.
However, his declaration rather angered the other thugs and provoked them.
"You little shit!" One of the thugs shouted angrily, "You think you're a hot shot just 'cuz you got a cheapshot on our Mushi?! We'll beat your sorry ass into next week!"
"Bring it on then, you bastards! You don't scare me!" The blonde spat in an equal tone.
"LET'S TEACH THIS COCKY MOTHERFUCKER A LESSON, BOYS!"
The four angry thugs roared as they all started to charge right at Takemichi, ready to beat him down.
The fired-up blonde let out a battle cry as he fearlessly as he also charged into the group, the rod firmly held in his hand.
As they charged, the sounds of fighting, yelling, and metal clunking could be heard offscreen.
Meanwhile, the teen girl who was the whole reason for this conflict was still lying on the ground when she slowly felt herself waking up.
Once she opened her eyes, she put a hand to her cheek and made a pained noise.
'Damn, my cheek really hurts...' She thought in pain.
She was lucky that she only got slapped and didn't take an actual punch. Lord knows how much more damage that would've done. Although, it still didn't change the fact that it hurt like hell.
"AARGH!"
"Huh?" Her ears perked up at the sudden noise. "What was that?" She asked in confusion.
She raised her body from the floor and turned to find the source of the cry of anguish before her eyes widened at the sight before her.
She saw three bodies lying on the floor, well four if you wanna count that main thug of the group who's currently slumped.
She was a bit surprised to see that they had somehow been taken out, but that wasn't fully it.
What really shocked her was what she saw when she looked up...
She saw none other than her friend, Takemichi, who earlier was getting beaten to a pulp, fighting against another thug, who seemed to be the only one standing.
Her gaze went back to the laid out thugs on the ground, then went over to the one who had been wailing on him earlier, and her eyes widened in shock as she came to a realization.
"Takemichi... was the one who did this...?" She asked in surprise and a bit of disbelief before looking back to the fight in front of her.
Takemichi himself was currently facing the last thug of the group standing.
The teen, fuelled by his anger of seeing Emma get hurt, had actually managed to beat three out of the four other thugs who had charged at him. Of course, it wasn't easy, as he had to take a few hits from some of them in order to get in, but with the help of the metal rod, he was able to efficiently knock them all out. He was now left with only one to deal with.
Said thug let out a roar as he threw a punch at Takemichi, the latter moving to dodge it.
This however, was only a feint thrown by the thug for him to follow up with an actual punch, which he did.
Takemichi grunted in pain, but as soon as his opponent moved to hit him again, he quickly ducked and roughly rammed the rod into the thug's gut before hacking him on the knee.
The thug cried out in pain, getting down on a knee, and the blonde used that opportunity to whack him right in the face with his weapon, whiplashing his head and knocking him out cold, his body falling to the floor.
This meant that all of the thugs were now defeated, and it was done by the same teen they had been preying on...
Emma's face was gobsmacked as she stared at Takemichi's form standing tall over all the slumped thugs on the ground.
"Take... michi..." She couldn't help but whisper his name in awe, "He really beat all of those guys... by himself..."
The teen in question panted heavily as he tried to recover from his previous battle. He looked pretty crappy right now, his hair being all messed up, his face covered in scratches along with a bruised eye, and his clothes looking pretty shabby.
Despite his condition, he looked over the forms of all the laid-out thugs, and couldn't help the prideful smirk that grew on his face.
"That's what you get, scumbags..." He taunted with contentment.
However, right before he could celebrate his win further, his eyes went wide when he felt something weird inside him.
'What the... I-I can't move...!' He shouted mentally as he felt his weapon slip out of his hand.
Unfortunately, once he was no longer fighting, all of the adrenaline fueling Takemichi during his fight disappeared from his body, letting all of the pain he endured start to take effect.
'Crap...' He cussed internally, 'Everything's hurting... that means m-my body's startingtoshut down...!' He realized.
His vision started to get blurry, and everything around him was moving in slow motion.
'No... I-I can't...' He uselessly tried to fight it, 'I have to... make sure she's...'
At that point, his body completely gave in, and he felt himself slowly falling to the floor.
As he fell to the ground, a certain name came to his mind as his vision started to fully darken.
'Emma...'
His head finally hit the ground, and his hearing started to fade away.
Right before he slipped into unconsciousness, a muffled voice shouting his name with worry could be heard, but he couldn't make it out in his current state.
And with that, everything went black...
*Beep*... *Beep*
That was all we could hear.
Then, a soft groan could be heard as we see a certain someone's eyes start to open from their perspective.
'Huh...?' The individual thought.
It was Takemichi, and he was slowly regaining consciousness.
'Where... am I...?' He wondered as he awoke from his slumber.
Once his eyes fluttered open, the blurriness in his vision finally faded away, and he was staring right at a ceiling.
His ears registered the beeping noise in the room, and he quickly realized it was the sound of a medical monitor.
Paired with the fact that he seemed to be lying in a bed, he was quickly able to put two and two together and realized where he was at.
'I'm at the hospital...!' He figured out, 'But how...? How did I get here? Who brought me here? And why am I getting a strange sense of déjà vu right now...?' He asked himself with a bit of confusion.
Deciding to get up and check his surroundings, he slowly raised himself up and moved his arms to stretch a little.
However, while he bringing them, his hand suddenly brushed against something odd on his right.
'Huh?' He paused, 'What the heck was that?' He asked himself with confusion, wondering what he had just felt.
He moved his arm, trying to find what he had brushed against before his hand eventually landed on what he assumed to be the object, although...
'What the? What is this object that I'm touching...?' He thought in curiosity, 'And why does it feel... bouncy...?'
Whatever it was he was holding, it felt oddly squidgy and firm in his palm, as if it were made to fit right or something.
Out of curiosity, he gave the object an experimental squeeze.
'Woah! It's so soft...!' He exclaimed mentally in surprise, 'It feels totally squishy in my hand!' He remarked.
Truthfully, the object did feel pretty soft, and squeezing it felt kinda... good.
'Gee, this thing kinda feels like some sort of water balloon or something...' He compared, 'Although the texture of the shirt doesn't make me too sure...'
Wait a minute...
Shirt... texture...?
Right as that thought came to his head, his confused eyes slowly went wide.
'Hold on... Don'ttellme...' He thought, slowly feeling a bit of fear inside him.
The blonde slowly moved his head towards his right, silently hoping that the feeling he had was incorrect and just a hunch.
Although, as soon as he turned to the right, all that hope went out the window and his eyes instantly turned white when he saw what exactly it was he was touching.
That object Takemichi had just groped wasn't a water balloon or a pillow...
It was a female breast...
And it wasn't just any random girl's breast...
No, the bosom he had just felt up belonged to none other than his friend, Emma Sano...
Said girl was currently staring wide-eyed at his hand, which was still lying on her breast, with a giant blush on her face.
'E-Emma?!' He mentally shouted her name in horror when he witnessed the situation.
He had just copped a feel of her without even realizing it!
The flushed blonde girl slowly brought her eyes up and they locked eyes in an awkward silence, before Takemichi swiftly retreated his hand.
"GAH! S-SORRY! I'M SO SORRY!" The red-faced blonde loudly apologized in panic, frantically waving his arms around, "I-I DIDN'T MEAN TO TOUCH YOU THERE, I-IT WAS A COMPLETE ACCIDENT, I SWEAR! P-PLEASE DON'T BE MA-!"
"TAKEMICHI!" She suddenly called out.
The teen paused his freak-out at the mention of his name.
"I-It's okay, don't freak out..." She told him sheepishly, "I-I know you weren't trying to be a perv or anything... S-So it's alright..." She assured him, averting her gaze.
"R-Really...?" He asked.
"Y-Yeah..." She affirmed, shyly twirling a lock of her hair.
Emma knew Takemichi wasn't like that, and that he'd never intentionally grope her without her consent, so she wasn't angry.
Plus... she actually... kinda... liked it...
A lot...
Although she'd never admit it out loud. She'd probably die of embarrassment...
"O-Okay then." Takemichi accepted, his blush slowly calming down.
Now that that whole thing was cleared up, he had a chance to properly look around the room, noting his hospital gown and the cubicle curtain.
"So..." He called, getting Emma's attention, "Do you have any idea how exactly we got here?" He asked her.
"Oh yeah, you can thank me for that." She answered.
"Hm?" He uttered in confusion, raising an eyebrow.
"Well... after you passed out back at that trail, I called an ambulance on my phone, and it brought both of us to the hospital." She elaborated further to clear up his confusion. "I even called the police to come and arrest those thugs."
"Wow, seriously?" He asked with a bit of surprise at the information.
Although, his surprise suddenly turned into worry when he remembered the events that had occurred.
"W-WAIT! I almost forgot!" He said before he suddenly brought his hands to Emma's shoulders, taking her aback, "A-Are you okay...?" He questioned her, looking into her eyes with an anxious expression on his face.
His question made her widen her eyes in surprise, before she slowly became confused.
"Am I okay?" She repeated in a confused tone, "Dude! How could you even be asking me that when you're the one who was getting beaten up to near death?!" She asked him incredulously, shocked that he was somehow thinking about her state before even acknowledging his own.
"I don't give a crap about that!" He responded instantly, "What matters more to me is how you're feeling right now!" He told her seriously.
Hearing his response silenced Emma once again, as she was shocked by the fact that he actually considered her condition to be of more importance than his own.
She stared at him in surprise for a bit before she eventually decided to respond.
"Well, I'm okay." She answered his previous question truthfully, "My cheek kinda stung a bit but the doctors gave me an ice pack to reduce it. Honestly, it was a good thing I only got a slap and not an actual punch..." She added, rubbing her cheek and little.
However, she was surprised when she suddenly felt Takemichi's hand grasp her chin and bring her face closer to his.
"E-Eh?!" She let out in surprise, her cheeks getting a bit pink at the sudden close proximity.
She watched as Takemichi's eyes gazed over her face intensely, inspecting her face for any sort of injuries.
Once he was done, he let go of her chin and sighed in relief.
"Thank goodness..." He uttered, satisfied that he couldn't spot any injuries.
Even though he was glad to see that she was alright, inside, he was still feeling pretty angry. Angry at the fact that Emma had gotten hurt, and angry at that thug for even daring to lay his hand on her.
But... most importantly, he was angry at himself... angry because he felt like he didn't do enough to protect her.
"I'm sorry..." He suddenly apologized.
"Huh? Sorry for what?" Emma asked, confused.
He cast his gaze down, "The reason you got hurt was because you were trying to protect me... even though I was the one who was supposed to be protecting you..." He said with guilt in his voice.
His statement surprised Emma, and her face become a lot more worried and sympathetic when she realized how he was feeling.
"Takemichi, it's okay..." She comforted him, putting her hand on his own, "I chose to jump in and try to help you myself, so don't be too hard on yourself." She assured him, making him look up at her.
"Plus, you beat the same guy who hit me and beat up the rest of his crew right?" She reminded him, "If anything, you made up for it by teaching those punks a big lesson, don't ya think?" She said with an encouraging smirk.
The male blonde thought over her words for a bit, before he eventually managed to smile and let out a chuckle.
"You're right. I guess I did redeem myself by teaching those guys a lesson!" He agreed with a grin.
She smiled at his change in demeanor, happy that her efforts to comfort him had worked.
"Speaking of which, hot damn!" Emma retorted, "I guess I can't keep calling you weak anymore huh? Not after the sight you displayed back there!" She joked.
Her comment made him chuckle again, "Yeah yeah I know. The weak 'Takemitchy' somehow managed to beat five tough thugs by himself. Total shocker." He joked right along with her.
"Heh, but seriously. It was cool to see you like that." She complimented genuinely, "Earlier, you were getting beaten up like a ragdoll but then you managed to turn the tables and beat all of them. How were you even able to do that?" She questioned him with curiosity.
"I dunno really..." He responded, "I guess it just had something to do with you."
"Me?" She asked with surprise, pointing at herself.
"Yeah..." He confirmed before looking down at his lap, "During that fight... when I saw you get hit and fly back right in front of my eyes... it... awoke something in me..." He revealed.
Emma didn't even make a comment, as she put her full attention into Takemichi's revelation, surprised by it.
"I felt this indescribable rage inside me... one that I've never even felt before in my life... I guess... I was furious... furious at the fact that someone was willing to hit a girl who was so important to me..." He explained seriously, clutching his chest, "And during that fury, all I could hear in my head was a voice calling to me... shouting that I had to keep you safe... shouting that I had to protect you... and make those guys pay for what they did..."
"And then... I didn't even have to think before dropping that main guy to the floor... and I didn't think twice before heading into a fight with those other men... because my desire to protect you was the only thing fueling my body at that time..." He revealed before looking back at her seriously, "And I don't regret what I did ONE bit... because it allowed me to protect you from any more harm...!"
Emma stared at him with a shocked expression, floored by his big revelation.
Takemichi had managed to push back all his pain, knock out the guy who had beat him, fearlessly head into battle with the rest of his friends, and DEFEAT ever one of them... all because of her..?
He wanted to protect her so bad that he was willing to risk his life just to keep her safe...?
He cared for her that much...?
Knowing that her friend/crush would go to such great lengths for her filled Emma with an indescribable feeling... and it also brought back certain thoughts she had on the way to the hospital...
"Takemichi..." She silently called out his name with her head low.
"Yeah? What's wrong?" He asked her curiously when he noticed that her hair was shadowing her eyes.
Although, she just stayed quiet for a few seconds with no response, and the blonde started to get a bit worried.
"H-Hey, Emma..." He called out with s bit of worry, "I-Is everything okay...? Why are you quie-?"
He stopped however, when he heard what sounded like sniffling.
Soon enough, the sniffling was accompanied by the sound of whimpering, and when Emma looked up, his worry was accompanied by surprise.
The girl had tears running down her face, "T-Takemichi..." She whimpered his name before she suddenly brought her head down to his lap, taking him aback.
"I'm so glad... I'm so glad you're alright...!" She sobbed into his lap, surprising him.
"*Sniff* W-When I saw you collapse back there... my heart almost stopped, and I-I was instantly filled with worry." She tearfully revealed, "And when the ambulance came and took you into the truck, I stayed by your side the entire ride to the hospital...*Sniff*" She cried, staining his cover.
"And even when they brought you here, as soon as they said I could come in, I stayed in your room with you the entire time... because I-I was so scared by the thought of losing you... and Iwouldn't know how to live without seeing you again... y-you're too important to me for you to die...!" She cried truthfully, letting out all her previous feelings.
Takemichi stared down at Emma with wide eyes, absolutely stunned by what she had just revealed to him.
He never realized how important he was to Emma, and hearing all that she had just blurted right now had made him realize that fact.
His face then became more understanding and a bit sad as he thought.
'She stayed by my side the entire time... because she was afraid that I would leave her... Ican't imagine how scared she must've been seeing me unconscious...' He thought to himself in sadness.
Although, he made a promise to himself that he wouldn't let her cry ever again, and that if she did, he'd always be there to comfort her. So, he decided to keep his word.
"Emma... look at me..." He suddenly called out.
With a sniff, she raised her head and looked at him with bloodshot eyes, before her eyes widened when he suddenly brought her close and pulled her into his chest, hugging her.
"H-Huh?" She uttered in surprise.
"Emma, listen to me..." He requested her, making her stay quiet and listen to him.
"I'mdeeply flattered that you care so much, and that you were willing to not leave my side even once... but it's okay." He told her, "You don't have to worry now... because I'm here..." He whispered quietly, making her gasp silently.
"Look." He said as he grabbed one of her hands and put it onto chest, letting her feel his heartbeat, "You feel that...? My heart is beating. Which means I'm alive... I'm here with you right now... holding you tenderly..." He comforted.
"You don't have to be scared... because I'mnot going anywhere... I'm always gonna be here with you... and you'll always be able to see me... That's a promise..." He promised her with a soothing voice and a sweet smile.
Emma was absolutely floored by his words, and she looked up at him with a shocked face.
Hearing his comforting words, paired with his warm smile had made her realize why she gained feelings for him in the first place...
She started to tear up again, and she quickly wrapped her arms around Takemichi for a hug, the boy being a bit taken aback by how tight she was embracing him, but accepting it nonetheless, hugging her back.
"Takemichi... you'retoo good to me..." She stated with fresh tears, "Please... promise me that you'll never leave me alone..." She begged him quietly.
"Of course, Emma." He quickly responded without hesitation, "I'll always be here for you... you can count on that..." He whispered seriously into her ear.
His agreement made her cry even harder, and she held him even tighter as she cried into his shoulder, letting out all of her emotions...
The blonde simply hugged her back and allowed her to pour out all her tears, not bothered at all by dampness on his shoulders.
The two teens sat there as they held each other close...
On this day, both of them had come so close to losing one another, and not only did they learn just how deeply they'd be affected by not being able to seeing each other...
But they also learned about just how important they were to each other...
And both of the blondes made sure to embrace each other closely, settling in the comfort of one another's presence.
Not knowing that after this day, their relationship would grow even stronger...