A/N: To those who waited, here it is. Patience is a virtue anyway. Disclaimer: Super Gals not mine.

Chapter 3: Befriend

Rei had been pondering on a lot of things that day. He thought about the weather, politics, traffic. He even contemplated on the small things like how a smile could brighten up a dreary, miserable day.

In short, he wasn't thinking straight. Besides, who in their right mind would listen to advice from Yuuya?

Certainly, he was losing it. There were a myriad of reasons that could have led to his 'condition'.

Maybe it had been too hot outside that it fried his brains and made him move on autopilot. Maybe it had been the hours he spent cooped in that record store, waiting for almost eons.

Or maybe it was just her presence that he'd never noticed before.

Okay, hold on.........back to reality.

"Rei, where are we going?" His passenger queried innocently. She had been silent for most of the duration of the ride, probably thinking like him.

"Where do you want to go?" He threw the question back at her. He found replies like that quite irritating. But this time didn't count since it was coming from him.

"I don't know," Aya said, thoughtfully. "I thought you had somewhere in mind."

He was sick of restaurants; too many interviews were held there. Amusement parks were not his thing. Arcades were obviously not Aya's thing.

".........do you want to go to a museum?" Rei asked. It was the only place he could think of at the moment. Besides, fangirls would never dream of looking for him there.

Aya looked at his back quizzically. "Are you sure?"

"Do I look like I'm joking?"

"I can't see your face."

He looked behind him, sighing. It wasn't really smart to avert your eyes from the road, but a second won't matter right?

She was smiling benignly at him, "I guess you're not then. Which museum?" "The one that's holding an exhibit right now.........an art museum."

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The art museum was farther from the center of Shibuya than Aya ascertained it to be. It was a white building with lots of drapes on its windows and it lay beside a small park.

There was indeed a special exhibit being held, one on impressionism. Aya's interest was piqued. She deemed it was caused by the vibrant colors and the unusual illustration. But of course she knew that every painting portrayed something deeper in meaning. She just didn't know what they meant yet, and was content to her speculation. Rei remained silent over the duration. He spoke little, only to comment here and there, but there was no mistaking the awe in his voice.

They reached a certain work of art, and Aya was slightly puzzled as to what it was depicting. After much thought, she decided it was some sort of vegetable, albeit the long ears sprouting from its nose. Satisfied, she turned to Rei, who seemed to be viewing it as keenly as her. He looked quite unsure.

"What do you think it is Aya-san?" He asked, finally starting conversation. Not that he needed to, because Aya was about to ask him the exact question.

"Hmm. It looks like," She paused, indecisively, as if spouting such a ridiculous notion would offend him, "a carrot."

He gave her a look she could not decipher, before a small smile tugged at his lips, and he continued to observe the said picture.

"I thought so too."

A warm blush spread across her cheeks at his approval, only to disappear at the sharp disapproving voice behind her.

"Contrary to popular belief, this painting is not of a carrot, or any vegetable for that matter." Aya whirled around to come face to face with a strict tour guide. Behind the woman stood several snotty looking eleven- year olds, reminiscent of a younger refined Mami in their crisp blue uniforms. Products of private schooling, no doubt.

The blush returned, but it was more of embarrassment than anything else. Aya felt smaller than she really was. Luckily, Rei came to the rescue.

"Let's go Aya. It's too stuffy in here," And with that said, the dark- haired man pulled her away from the hanged art piece. Aya caught a glimpse of the tour guide's face and withheld a giggle. It was priceless.

They were out in the sunlight in a few minutes. The museum had been dark because of the drapes, and it took some time before Aya's eyes adjusted to the lighting. When they did, she took into note that the sun was not really that bright, meaning it was to be nightfall soon. She should go home in a while.

'How long did we stay in there?'

'Two hours. Then there was traffic. You've been with him from three o'clock in the afternoon,' Her mind responded quickly.

"Aya, do you want to have a snack? It's getting dark," Rei interrupted, out of the blue. He gestured toward a food stand selling hotdogs. Aya nodded.

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Pink, yellow, blue.........swirling colors.

Must wake up.

She reached for her alarm clock blindly, her arms flailing towards where her brain remembered the infernal contraption would be. However, she felt something soft instead of the cool plastic she was expecting. She tilted her head slightly to find a blurry figure obscuring her view of the timepiece and the window behind it. It had been the soft texture she had touched.

Pink, yellow, blue.........more swirling colors.

Aya closed her eyelids.

So sleepy.........

"Aya, wake up. Aya!" The voice and the figure slowly registered in Aya's mind.

Mother.

"What is it?" She opened an eye, flinching at the sudden light that filled her senses. Her mother had moved from the window and in front of Aya's bed. The woman's lips were pursed, a frown marring her beautiful features. She was an older image of Aya, but with deep blue orbs of sapphire.

"Maybe you can tell me," Okaasan pointed at the window with a manicured finger.

Aya stood up from the solace of her bed, and peeked out of the second-story window. She gasped.

A mob of girls gathered by the locked gate, screaming and looking every bit murderous. They formed a circle over one adolescent who held a loud speaker. Aya recognized some of the girls as those dark-skinned fangirls who always followed Rei.

The one with the amplifier noticed Aya looking out and yelled, "It's her!" All heads turned to the upper window.

"Hey you!" The leader called, "who do you think you are, flirting with Rei- sama like that!"

Rei.........sama?

"You should be ashamed of yourself," The girl continued.

"I-I didn't do anything..." Aya glanced at her mother, as if addressing her. "We just went to a museum!" The older female looked at her inquiringly.

"I didn't!" Aya protested. Her shoulders slumped slightly. "Rei and I.........we're just friends........."

Okaasan raised an eyebrow and left the room. She ignored the chanting from outside. "I'm leaving in a few minutes. Get dressed if you want to get to your classes on time. I gather those girls outside won't be letting you out through the front gate."

"H-Hai!" Aya glimpsed at the window for the last time and closed her bedroom door. She hurried to her closet, deep in thought.

'We're just friends, Rei and I.........He doesn't like me that way. He told me so. Even if it was indirectly.' She mused, as she opened the cabinet. A white spaghetti top caught her attention, and she took it, still cogitating.

'But why is everyone else thinking otherwise?'

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To be continued.

I like visiting museums. Call me old-fashioned but the works are amazing. And like Aya and Rei, I don't really understand the hidden meaning in each portrait.

Again, sorry if they were OOC, but it's hard to work with an icicle for a hero and a mouse for a lead. No offense, to true-blue AyaxRei people! I do love them but they're really difficult. The past episodes their relationship's been down-siding but I can hope right?

Review minna!